Angry parents have formed an action group in protest at the handling of a major schools shake-up.

They claim they have been given too little information and too little time to give their views on the education review currently being conducted by Bradford Council.

An action group has now been formed by parents at Nab Wood Middle School in New Close Road, Nab Wood.

They have launched a petition which is strongly critical of the way the Council has carried out the schools review, which could see the end of middle schools in the district.

And members of the action group are urging other parents from across the district to join their campaign.

They are calling on the Council not to take any further steps before parents are consulted on detailed proposals.

Parents clubbed together after a recent meeting of 150 of them at the school and have issued a statement saying: "The action group has initially focused discussion on the appalling lack of information circulated to parents prior to being asked to make returns on the consultation questionnaire.

"The questionnaire was felt to be misleading and generalised to the point of being meaningless."

Linda Littlewood, of Hazel Beck, Bingley, one of the leading members of the action group, said parents at Nab Wood Middle had not necessarily formed a view yet one way or another about whether things needed to be changed but added that they were angry that they were being asked for their views without being told the full facts.

"What they are most concerned about is the way the process is being handled. A lot of people felt that the Council wanted to change the status quo and that the things that people were being asked on the questionnaire were either loaded or oversimplified to the point of being almost cynical," she said.

But Councillor Jim Flood (Lab, Bingley), chairman of the Council's education committee, today rejected criticisms about lack of information.

"I thought the summary that was sent out was excellent and as comprehensive as could be expected for something that was boiled down from 95 pages.

"In any case, every school was sent a copy of the full report. It was in no way a secret or underground document," he said.

He urged the action group to send in its petition before this Friday's deadline for submissions so that its views could be considered.

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