RESIDENTS fighting plans to demolish their homes to make way for a flagship school in Darwen have been given fresh hope after MPs called for a halt to new academies.

Some 150 homes in the Redearth area are due to be ripped down as part of the Elevate housing plan for East Lancashire - but many of those will make way for Darwen Academy, a new £35million school to replace the failing Darwen Moorland High School.

Residents unhappy at the prospect have formed an action group - Darwen Residents Action Group (DRAG) - and are clubbing together to pay for a barrister to argue the case for keeping their homes.

But they have been given a ray of hope after the Commons Education Committee accused ministers of lacking a coherent strategy and of rolling out schemes without proper evaluation.

After a two-year inquiry the group concluded £5billion government funding being poured into the super-schools should be halted until the existing academies could prove they were cost-effective.

Nine out of the existing 11 academies were also placed among the bottom 200 schools, calling into question their worth.

DRAG members welcomed the development, which they hope will strengthen their case against building the new school.

Redearth resident Christine Oldfield said: "These new doubts thrown on academies are good news for us. But at the end of the day if 150 homes are pulled down and it doesn't go ahead it will have all been for nothing.

"We're still very much fighting against the academy and residents are currently clubbing together to pay for barristers' fees."