Sports chief Trevor Brooking has slammed the state of sporting facilities described as "antique" at a Bradford secondary school.

The former England football star was visiting the city in his role as chairman of Sport England (formerly the Sports Council).

After being shown around Buttershaw High School he said: "The sports facilities there are really poor. There were a couple of little indoor halls and all the outdoor pitches were waterlogged. There are 1,800 pupils there and how they manage to get any proper exercise I don't know."

He went there to call on the Government to increase funding for school sports facilities.

The Buttershaw school has plans for a joint development with a private company that would bring it nine new astroturf pitches, improved tennis courts and a sports hall. But a recent bid for match funding from the Department of Education was turned down.

"We have got to ask Education how they can expect the sporting curriculum to be taught if the facilities are not there," said Mr Brooking.

"It is not just about health. Our argument is about helping problems like vandalism, crime and drugs, particularly at a secondary age. Participation in sport can help solve these by improving life skills, confidence and behaviour."

He said that the current generation of primary school children had the lowest ever technical sporting skills - and something needed to be done quickly.

Buttershaw deputy head teacher Dave Morgan agreed that the school's sporting facilities were poor.

He said that Sport England chief executive Derek Casey, also on the visit, had described the schools 1950s all-weather pitch as antique.

"Our students do manage to do very well at PE and we have the best GCSE results in the city," he said. "But we believe that if our sports teams get new facilities they would do even better." The Sport England tour of the city, arranged by Bradford South MP Gerry Sutcliffe, also included visits to Tong, Yorkshire Martyrs, Grange and Haycliffe schools and talks with Bradford Council, Bradford Bulls and Bradford City.

It came as the council announced plans to close and sell both Scholemoor Sports Centre and Eccleshill sports centre, on the site of the former Eccleshill School. On being told the news Mr Brooking said it was important that the land and the money from the sale continued to be used for sport and recreation.

Mr Sutcliffe said talks were underway to make sure this happened at Scholemoor. The council's executive member for the environment, Counillor Anne Hawksworth, said Scholemoor needed £350,00 in investment to bring it up to modern standards and there was no alternative but to close it.

"It is a significant amount of money for the council to find so it seems sensible to seek new investment so that it can continue to be available for recreation or leisure purposes or general use," she said.

"As far as activities at Eccleshill are concerned we will have an alternative to the former school building and initial talks with the new Immanuel Community College are going well."