Parents protest over Darras Hall First School relocation

Parents are worried the school is too far away and pupils will not be able to cycle or walk

Parents of children at a Northumberland school have held a protest against council proposals to move their school.

Plans are being considered to relocate Darras Hall First School, in Ponteland, to a greenbelt site two miles (3km) away.

One mother at Wednesday's protest said the council's plans would "rip the heart out of the community".

The school would be part of a "super campus" including middle and high schools.

Jane Harrington, who has two children at the school, said she wanted her children to stay in the "nurturing environment" of Darras Hall.

Parents have also expressed concerns about an increase in traffic as 2,500 pupils will be making their way to the new centre.

Northumberland County Council's business chairman Councillor Scott Dickinson said government funding restrictions meant selling land and moving schools to a collective site was "the only way" they could provide the facilities for children and offer them "the best possible education".