School: no deal at bishop meeting

NO decision has been made on the location of the borough’s new Catholic high school following top-level talks.

The Bishop of Salford, the Rt Rev Terence Brain, met Oldham Council on Tuesday after plans to build the £30 million school at the Meridian Centre were scrapped.

The proposal was part of Oldham’s £230 million Building Schools for the Future (BSF) plans to rebuild or refurbish all of the borough’s secondary schools.

But the council decided the location, next to Oldham bypass — favoured by the diocese because it is accessible to all — was not realistic.

It has now offered the diocese the former Radclyffe Lower School site, Chadderton.

The council has to complete its BSF outline business case by January.

A council spokesman said: “Oldham Council and the Roman Catholic diocese are continuing to work closely together to resolve the issues relating to the new school within very the demanding time scales of the Building Schools for the Future programme.”