Film of the protest march in London

Bradford education union officials have lobbied Government ministers to urgently rethink the “disastrous” decision to axe the district’s secondary school rebuilding programme.

Representatives of at least two Bradford teaching unions joined colleagues from across the country to make their feelings known at Westminster over the scrapping of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

Education Secretary Michael Gove halted 735 school projects earlier this month. The move pulled schemes to refurbish or rebuild 19 Bradford schools in the £337 million third phase of Bradford Council’s BSF programme.

Rebuilding projects at two of the city’s academies have been frozen and listed for discussion.

Teachers, councillors and pupils also joined yesterday’s Save Our Schools lobby, led by the NASUWT union.

Peter Hudman, health and safety co-ordinator for the union’s Bradford branch, took part in the protest.

Branch deputy secretary Pam Milner said: “It’s vital the Government reconsiders this action.

“If ministers could actually see the state of some of the buildings some of our children are learning in and some of our teachers are teaching in then they would surely see that there is no viable alternative but to go ahead with phase three as planned.”

Ian Murch, Bradford branch secretary of the NUT, said John Howarth, the branch’s treasurer, was one of two representatives at the lobby.

Mr Murch said: “Bradford has been particularly hard-hit by this decision with the cancelling of the two special schools and the failure to produce the extra school places we so badly need. It’s a disaster really.”

Councillor Ralph Berry, the Council’s executive member for children’s services and education, said hard work was being undertaken behind the scenes to make the strongest case possible to finish Bradford’s BSF programme.

He said: “There is very detailed work going on at a number of levels working with everyone and anyone. One other local authority is going to court and we will be watching for the outcome of the judicial review with great interest.”

He said news on the future of the frozen rebuilding projects at Appleton Academy, in Wyke, and Dixons Allerton Academy, in Allerton, was due soon.

“I’m expecting to hear this week on the academies because Michael Gove has promised to review these projects urgently,” he said. “We are working in top gear to find out what bidding processes we can go down.

“Bradford has a strong case. We have a growing population.”