I AM responding to Mr & Mrs Kelly's letter (Letters Page, Bury Times, 27th May, 2005) in respect of the proposal to relocate the Bury & Whitefield Jewish Primary School to a new site off Old Hall Lane, Whitefield.

The council must make it quite clear that the proposal to relocate the school, and subsequently the need to identify a new site on which to build it, is a decision of the trustees and governing body of Bury & Whitefield Jewish Primary School.

As a Voluntary Aided School, the trustees of the school and not the council, own the building, and it is the trustees who are responsible for the development of that building or its replacement. The trustees can bid for capital funding from central government for up to 90 per cent of the eligible costs, but must meet the balance of those costs from within their own resources. In addition they must meet the site acquisition costs but these costs may be offset against any capital receipts from the sale of the site of the present building. However, the school playing field remains in the ownership of the council, and no decision will be taken on the future of that part of the school site, until the trustees proposal is confirmed.

The council is supportive of the school's ambitions and aspirations in the same way that it supports all of its schools. In providing such support it will want to be assured that the proposal is based on sound judgements; will support school improvement; and represents a cost effective solution.

As a significant proportion of the funding is likely to come from central government, the Department for Education and Skills will no doubt want to seek a commitment that any money generated by the sale of land is used to to offset the total grant that might be available to support the project.

PAUL COOKE

Head of Schools' Planning and Management Service