COUNCILLORS have blasted 'barmy' proposals to create a new Horsforth school on Green Belt land.

Leeds City College is planning to sell its Horsforth campus site - a location many in the town thought would be an ideal location for another school, to help meet growing demand.

Leeds City Council, however, points out that the campus site is actually allocated for housing in its draft future development blueprint.

The authority is instead considering a plot of Green Belt land in Horsforth, known as Strawberry Fields, as a possible location for a new school.

Councillor Chris Townsley (Lib Dem, Horsforth) slammed that plan as "crazy".

Councillor Brian Cleasby (Lib Dem, Horsforth) added: "The Horsforth campus would be perfect for a school to move into and grow.

"There are already purpose-built education buildings - classrooms, laboratories, sports facilities, and a dining hall, as well as arrangements in place with public transport for the current college.

"On top of this, there are the fantastic playing fields which absolutely must be kept for the children of Horsforth, given the shortage in the city.

"Why would they want to pull down these buildings for housing and then waste a huge amount of money building a brand new school on a prime piece of Green Belt land that is loved by the whole community?

"This is a barmy idea - they need a good dose of common sense!"

A Leeds City Council spokeswoman responded: "In the current draft Site Allocations Plan, the Horsforth Campus is allocated for new homes and not educational purposes.

"We are currently looking to create capacity in existing schools based on the need in the next few years.

"As part of an integrated approach the council is exploring potential future school place requirements and locations to go alongside the developments that may potentially come forward, as it is entirely prudent to do.”