Cheshire East Council has confirmed its still trying to find a suitable site in Crewe for an alternative provision school, after plans for Flag Lane Baths collapsed.

The council abandoned it plans to use the Flag Lane Baths site last month after the Department for Education refused to commit to a timeline for the scheme.

In scrapping the proposal, councillors instead accepted £3.465 million (high needs capital grant) offered by the DfE over three years to provide the extra provision in schools with unused space.

At this week's meeting of the economy and growth committee, where the future of the Flag Lane site was being discussed, Sutton councillor Chris O'Leary (Conservative), stressed there was still a desperate need for an alternative provision school.

Sutton councillor Chris O'Leary (Conservative) (Photo: CEC).

"We do have a number of unoccupied educational buildings around the borough," said Cllr O'Leary.

"More importantly, children who are excluded from school suffer some of the worst educational outcomes that any group faces.

"And so my first question is, what are we doing to replace Flag Lane as for alternative provision, because it is desperately needed."

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The council's head of economic development, Charles Jarvis, said: "I think we all recognise the importance of alternative provision schools and officers of the local authority are working with the multi academy trust to explore alternative sites for that provision within Crewe.

"At the moment, I'm not able to say anymore unfortunately."

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