CLASSROOMS at Botley Primary School in West Oxford will be extended to accommodate 60 extra children.

A planning application for the extensions at the school site in Elms Road will be considered by the county council’s planning committee on Monday.

The creation of 60 extra places will deal with increasing demand from the area and is part of an effort to plug a 500-place shortfall across Oxfordshire, created by a baby boom.

If approved, the extensions will provide 170 sq m of extra floor space and facilities for the school bringing its numnerof classrooms to 14 and enabling it to expand to two-form entry.

The total number of pupils would increase from 300 to 420.

Botley county councillor Janet Godden said: “There were two problems, one about the fact that extra children will come from the city.

“Of course, we will be very happy to have them, but they will be in some cases a long way from home.

“But with all the houses which are going to be built in Botley there will be more children.

“There was also the concern that if they just built terrapins so close to the A34 they would not be soundproof, and I think this application addresses that.”

In a report, environment and economy deputy director Martin Tugwell, said: “Objection has been raised by some local residents on traffic grounds.

“There would be some increase in pupil numbers if the new extensions were built because it would provide 60 extra places. Some of those pupils will have siblings and so the extra travel might not be as high as 60.

“Nevertheless, there would be some impact and a condition could be attached to any permission given, requiring the school travel plan to be updated.

“This was as suggested by one of the neighbours in their representation.”

He added: “The proposed development would provide a facility enabling the school, a valuable community facility, to meet local need.

“The development would not cause any significant harm to the local amenity, and the transport concerns can be addressed as far as is reasonable within the context of this specific planning application by the attachment of conditions to update the travel plan and to implement a construction management plan.”

Elms Road resident and retired academic John Mason, 69, said: “We are not against the expansion of the school itself.

“We recognise what is going on and the way it is being arranged.

“The problem is, at the moment there are 16 taxis a day coming in carrying children from Oxford, and the expansion could result in more.

“With the new parking restrictions most people are now parking in West Way and walking down, which is much better.

“It had been that you could not get in or out of here at 8.30am and 3.30pm.

“But it is going to get worse again, and also, what will happen when they knock down the whole of West Way and there is nowhere to park for two years?”

Neighbour Catherine Davies, 59, added: “I have lived here for 34 years and this road is a thoroughfare for the doctors, the nursery and the school and we have parking restrictions.

“Any more congestion on this road would be an absolute disaster. It is already very heavily built up, and we cannot take any more.

No-one was available at the primary school to comment on the expansion plans yesterday afternoon.