BLACKBURN is set to get Lancashire's first Muslim state school within three years, it was revealed today.

The 700-place girls' school for 11 to 16-year-olds will be created by bringing one of the town's seven private Muslim schools within the control of the local education authority.

And all schools in the borough are to be 'twinned' in a bid to end what the council has described as segregation in Blackburn with Darwen's schools.

Blackburn would be only the fifth education authority to have a Muslim girls' school.

The Government will have the final say on the scheme but no objections are expected to be raised, according to sources.

Up until now, the borough has had three church schools, giving non-Muslim parents the chance to choose what type of secondary education they wanted for their child.

But Muslim parents have had to spend hundreds of pounds a year on private schooling if they wanted their children to receive secondary education at a Muslim faith school.

Blackburn with Darwen Council's executive board will next week approve Tauheedul Islam Girls' High School, Bicknall Street, Shear Brow, to become a voluntary aided school, like the town's three church schools.

This means that it will provide free education and be funded by the Muslim community and the LEA, in the same way that church schools are funded by their dioceses and the LEA.

But proposals to turn a community high school -- which has no affiliation to any one faith -- into a church school to meet the over-subscription for places have been scrapped after failing to win support during a consultation which began in November, 2001.

And another proposal to turn a primary school into a Muslim primary school has also been shelved after Muslim leaders said they were happy with the provision on offer.

Coun Bill Taylor, leader of the council, said: "The recommendations demonstrate the priority that the council gives to continually improving education in our borough.

"They will increase parents choice and will better meet the educational needs of all our young people. There has been an extensive consultation and we have considered carefully all the views expressed.

"We have read carefully several documents, including the Clarke report following the disturbances in Burnley.

"We plan to take various steps, including twinning schools together so they work closely, to ensure that youngsters understand and respect each other."

The report to be studied by the executive board reports that 'de facto segregation' currently exists.

In Blackburn, Beardwood High School's roll is 93 per cent Asian, while St Wilfrid's is 98 per cent white. The report states that only three of the nine high schools can claim to have a mix that reflects the diversity of the borough.

It adds that this segregation is worsening, with Asian parents opting more and more for Muslim Faith Schools -- strengthening the case for bringing one into the LEA so that integration with other schools can be promoted.

But Simon Jones, National Union of Teachers Blackburn with Darwen secretary, said: "This school is uniquely for girls which makes it even more divided."

A new 'citizenship class' will also be introduced into the curriculum which will study other cultures. Mahfooz Hussain, the council's executive member for education and lifelong learning, said: "This will extend parental choice and school diversity in our already good school system.

"The Tauheedul School is delighted that the council is supporting their wish to join the network of secondary schools in Blackburn with Darwen."

Another benefit of bringing in Tauheedul is that it will guarantee a standard of education for children in a Muslim Faith School.

Seventy five per cent of pupils at Tauheedul get 5 A*-C grades at GCSE.

Faisal Hassan, a governor at the school, said: " The school is looking forward to working with the council and its schools to continue to provide the very best educational opportunities for all young people in the borough."

Ibrahim Master, chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques, said: "I believe that by doing this, it will enhance community cohesion by allowing the school to work more closely with other schools within the state system."

Canon Peter Ballard, director of education for the Church of England Diocese of Blackburn, also supported the school. He said: "I welcome the publication of the Council's proposals on Faith Schools, Community Cohesion and Cultural Diversity and the commitment to the important role of Faith Schools in our education system."