PLANS to demolish and rebuild two secondary schools in Southampton have been given the go ahead.

Councillors narrowly voted to back the plans for Chamberlayne College despite objections from residents and councillors over a controversial new access road.

They later unanimously approved plans to rebuild Sholing Technology College in Middle Road, which will require students to be moved into temporary accommodation.

The projects, worth more than £20m each, are part of a programme to rebuild or refurbish five secondary schools in the city.

Southampton City Council is set to receive £110m through the Government’s Building Schools for the Future fund – the biggest single investment in city schools for 50 years.

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A total of £200m is being sought by the council to overhaul a further two schools and improve computer facilities.

Chamberlayne College will be rebuilt alongside a multi-usegames area on another part of the school grounds with a new access road from Weston Lane.

Nearby Chamberlayne Leisure Centre refused to allow use of its car park for access.

The existing college will then be demolished for a 400m athletics track and sports pitches.

But residents of Scott Road and Marlow Court raised serious concerns about the proposed 175m long access road which will run past their homes.

They complained it would bring noise nuisance and a loss of privacy, while the re-jigged campus would result in traffic congestion in other roads near the new entrance gates.

Resident Lorraine Lake said: “We are very disappointed. It’s going to be a nightmare.”

She added that young children walking along a footpath to the Weston Park Infant and Junior schools could be put in danger as they had to cross the new access road.

Labour ward councillor Carol Cunio – along with fellow Labour and Lib Dem councillors – refused to back the plans in protest at the access road.

“This has to be rethought. It should not go ahead like this,”

she said.

However Tory councillors outvoted them to approve outline planning permission.

Schools boss CVouncillor Paul Holmes accused Labour and Lib Dems of putting the BSF project at risk.

“Without this going through it would have been game over. The Lab Lib block vote shows they are willing to vote against investment coming into our education system and to the improvement in attainment that it would have brought to our children.”

He added that the council would continue to seek views from the community as final plans for the schools were drawn up.