EDUCATION bosses are pressing ahead with plans to demolish an ‘outstanding’ village primary school and build a replacement nearby, despite opposition from residents.

Ever since Lancashire County Council revealed it was considering knocking down Laneshawbridge Primary School and building a new one nearby on land off Emmott Lane, residents in the village have maintained that they would prefer it to be re-sited elsewhere.

But the education authority has sent plans to Pendle Council, citing an intention to build the new modern school on land west of Emmott Lane and north of Sheridan Road.

Villagers fear the proposed school, which will include seven classrooms, a hall with kitchen and servery, special teaching spaces, welfare facilities for staff, children and visitors, sports field, car park and service road, will add to existing traffic problems in the area.

A meeting has now been planned for next week to provide residents with an opportunity to discuss the plans, before deciding what action to take.

Laneshawbridge Primary was recently named in the Sunday Times Parent Power schools list and is ranked eighth best in the North West.

Developers said they had acknowledged residents’ concerns, but that there had also been a lot of support for the plans.

But Jerry Stanford, of Laneshawbridge Parish Council, said a meeting had been scheduled to take place at the village Methodist Chapel at 7.30pm on Wednesday.

He said: “From a personal point of view I would prefer the site to be moved away from Emmott Lane because of traffic problems, particularly parents delivering and removing children, which was and still is causing mayhem at those times.

“It is equally dangerous at the crossroads of Keighley Road and Emmott Lane, where there has been a high accident rate over the last five years.”

The county council last year rubber-stamped plans to expand numbers at the school by 56 in 2011, after a four-week consultation.

The plans, which will take the school roll to 210 from 154, were unveiled due to an increased demand for places at the village school and higher birth rates in Pendle.