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High school fury in Headingley
Trustees of Leeds Girls' High School will meet next month to discuss the Headingley site after a political argument over its future spilled over. Click here for more details.
School leaders accused community campaigners of "perplexing behaviour" which they said caused the cancellation of a key meeting to discuss the way forward on Friday, October 12.
Leaders of the Headingley private school were to meet local campaigners over the future of the site.
The high school is merging with Leeds Grammar School at Alwoodley to form the Grammar School at Leeds, releasing the site in Headingley for development.
* CLICK HERE TO HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE LEEDS GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL SITE ROW
A local residents' action group is campaigning for maximum community use of the site.
A planning brief for the site, drawnup to guide development, was rejected by the councilbecause it proposed building on protected sports pitches and offered limited affordable housing.
A meeting to find common ground was set to be hosted by council leaders on Friday, but was cancelled at two hours' notice by deputy leader Coun Andrew Carter after Leeds North West Lib Dem MP Greg Mulholland said he would attend the meeting after an invitation from the action group.
Announcing the cancellation, deputy leader of the city council Coun Carter accused the action group of "blatant political bandstanding."
Mr Mulholland accused Coun Carter of "arrogance", Pam Bone of the high school action group said Coun Carter's commentswere "a disgrace", and Headingley Lib-Dem councillor David Morton called the decision to cancel "disgraceful and out of order" and said
It was "politically motivated."
School leaders have expressed their confusion about the situation and now lookset to plough ahead with their plans for the site.
Head of The Grammar School at Leeds, Dr Mark Bailey, said: "We were happy to accept an invitation from the joint leaders of Leeds City Council to a meeting, properly chaired by them, and involving representatives of a local action group.
"Our trustees had even decided to delay any further decision about the exact nature of the sale and/or redevelopment of the site until we had, again,
heard and considered the views of some sections of the community.
"It is utterly perplexing and deeply frustrating that action group members,who have been extremely vocal through
the local press in their demands that we listen to them, should now provoke the cancellation."
School trustees will meet in November to discuss the future of the site.
* Click here for more stories on the future of Leeds Girls' High School's Headingley site.
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Sunday 05 February 2012
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