A BRADFORD school has submitted a planning application for a new building to allow it to almost double its number of pupils.

Poplars Farm Primary School has applied to Bradford Council for an expansion of its current site including eight classrooms plus ancillary rooms, a new nursery in two new buildings, additional car parking and a new and extended playground.

The expansion is to help cater for a number of nearby housing developments. These include new housing off Poplars Park Road, which has been completed, and a further 145 homes which have been granted planning permission on, and adjacent to, Poplars Park Road.

The Poplars Park Road, Bolton Woods, school has 240 pupils aged between three and 11, including a reception class with a single year group.

The application aims to increase this to two year groups and a new nursery for 26 children aged under five, meaning the school’s pupils number will increase by an additional 206.

A large residential development of almost 700 homes is proposed within the nearby Bolton Woods Stone quarry, to the north of the school. This outline planning permission is being considered by planning chiefs.

The school’s application, which was submitted earlier this month, has not received any objections on Bradford Council’s planning website.

The school, which was built in 1976, held a public consultation event last month publicising the expansion plan.

Any negative comments on the expansion related to existing traffic and parking problems on Poplar Park Road at drop-off and pick up times for parents.

The application’s design and access statement, submitted to the council, said: “As an expansion of an existing school to create additional teaching space, the application is inherently low risk and is generally supported by the local community.”

Plans to create more spaces at Poplars Farm Primary School were announced in February last year.

It was one of two primary schools, alongside All Saints CofE Primary, Ilkley, due to take on more pupils after the council’s executive gave the expansions the green light.

Poplars Farm Primary continues to be rated as good by Ofsted, following its most recent inspection.

It is said to have maintained a good quality of education for its pupils since it was last inspected, in 2013.

Ofsted praised the school’s head teacher, Joanna Speak, for her work since being appointed to the role at the start of the academic year, in September.

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Speaking about the school earlier this month, Councillor Imran Khan, the council’s executive member for education, employment and skills, said: “Poplars Farm Primary is expanding to take on more pupils as two-form entry school from this September.

“It is very encouraging to see that it continues to provide a good education as it takes on more children.”