A DECISION on whether to close a school’s sixth form, and create hundreds of new places in lower years, will be made next week.

Earlier this year Carlton Bolling School in Undercliffe announced that it planned to close its sixth form in 2019, and to take on an extra 60 children in Year 7 each year, increasing its pupil admission number to 300 starting next September.

It would eventually lead to an extra 300 Year 7-11 places being created at the school, which currently has over 1,500 pupils.

A public consultation into the plans has now ended, and on Tuesday Bradford Council’s decision making executive will make a final judgement on whether to go ahead with the major shake up at the school.

A review of the district’s sixth forms held last year found that many were “unviable” and called for smaller, school based sixth forms to be replaced with larger sixth form colleges.

Two new city centre colleges have been announced, New College Bradford, which will be built on the former Britannia Mills site, off Nelson Street, will open in 2019. Another post 16 centre is being planned by the Dixons Academy Trust, which runs several primary and secondary schools in Bradford. That will be in central Bradford, although a location has yet to be confirmed.

So far Queensbury School has announced it will be closing its sixth form next summer, and Buttershaw Business and Enterprise College will close its post 16 provision in 2019 when the new colleges open.

Last month Carlton Bolling was judged “outstanding” in a glowing Ofsted report.

The Executive will also make a decision on plans to increase the pupil admission numbers at Low Ash Primary School in Shipley from 60 to 90. It would mean the school’s capacity would increase from 420 to 630 from September 2019.

The changes are expected to coast £3.6m.

Any building expansions would still require planning permission.

A report into the proposals says the changes at Carlton Bolling will not cost the taxpayer any money.

It also reveals that there has been opposition to the plans from some parents at the two schools.

In the Low Ash consultation 30 out of 55 responses were opposed to the expansion plans, with objections including concerns over increased traffic and pressure on existing facilities.

When it came to the Carlton Bolling proposals, 44 out of 50 of the people who responded were opposed to the changes.

Objectors questioned the disruption that the sixth form closure would cause to pupils, convenience of moving from Year 11 to the Sixth form, and that it was important the school had a local sixth form.

Councillor Imran Khan, Bradford Council’s Executive Education, Employment and Skills, said: “Bradford Council is committed to ensuring that the district’s schools can meet the increasing demand for places.

“We have already created more than 8,500 primary school places since 2010 and will meet the demand as it moves through to secondary schools.

“These proposals will allow two strong schools to expand. The closure of Carlton Bolling’s sixth form is being led by the school. It will allow it to focus on its 11-to-16 provision where the school has just been rated as outstanding in all areas in its recent Ofsted inspection.”

The executive meets in City Hall at 10.30am.