A GREAT Harwood primary school will remain closed for the first two days of the new term because building work to extend two classrooms has not been finished.

Pupils, who were due to start back at Our Lady and St Hubert's RC School, on Monday will now have two extra days holiday and will now start the new term on Wednesday, September 7.

Work started on extending the two classrooms in June and one was expected to be finished yesterday in time for the start of the new term on Monday.

Teachers were due to go into the school later this week to clean up and put equipment back into this classroom so that it was ready for the pupils.

But as it will not be finished until Saturday they will carry out this work on Monday and Tuesday and the school will remain closed for those two days.

The second classroom is not due to be completed until the end of September and the plan is to use the hall to teach the children affected.

Head teacher Anthony O'Neill said: "I am not blaming the contractors, they have worked really hard on the extension. It was a tight schedule to get it finished. They thought they would be able to do it, but a few things have conspired against them and so the work will now be finished on Saturday.

"I'm afraid it is just one of those things and so we now need to make sure that everyone knows that we will be closed on Monday and Tuesday."

The classrooms are being extended to accommodate the number of children now attending the school.

l St Augustine's RC High School, Billington, is also having to delay the start of term by two days due to unfinished building work.