CONTROVERSIAL moves to sell off school playing fields, possibly to make way for a sports complex, will be stepped up today.

Darlington Borough Council has launched a three-month consultation exercise on proposals to sell off land at Longfield Comprehensive School.

The authority is seeking permission from the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to dispose of the land, which it says has a sub-standard running track and hockey pitch. If the sale is approved, council officials say the money generated could provide enhanced facilities for the town's schools and enable the creation of a first-class tennis centre at Longfield.

The idea has already received support from the Lawn Tennis Association and Sport England, and it is hoped that a Lottery grant could be secured to help finance the project. But the authority must first go through the public consultation process, which may prove difficult after a previous unsuccessful attempt to sell off playing fields to housing developers.

A council spokesman said: "The process involves consulting with the school governors, staff, every parent, all the other schools in Darlington, local residents and authorised users of the playing fields.

"These people will be getting letters detailing what is planned and asking for their views.

"The aim is to get as many views as we possibly can during the consultation period."

Permission to sell off the land was withdrawn in May last year after residents highlighted a number of flaws in the council's application.

They said that the local authority's submission to the DfES had contained "various instances of inaccurate, distorted, misleading and untruthful information."

The area of land proposed for sale measures approximately 31,000 sq m. Opinions on the matter must be sent to the town hall by June 14.

Longfield School is currently waiting to hear if it is to become a specialist sports college.

An application has been made to the DfES after £55,000 was raised in an effort to secure the specialist status.