CAMPAIGNERS have vowed to continue fighting plans for a controversial academy after a community centre was chosen as its location.

The Willfield Community Education Centre in Bentilee was yesterday selected as the site for the Discovery Academy by Stoke-on-Trent City Council's Building Schools for the Future (BSF) board.

Longton's Edensor Technology College and Mitchell Business and Enterprise College, Bucknall, are to merge to form the new school, which is expected to open in 2013.

Around 1,600 pupils attend these two schools.

But Mitchell's chairman of governors Pat Smith, pictured, said the school intended to fight the decision by organising a petition to keep the school on the same site.

She said: "The issue is still that there should not be two schools. We have suggested having the Discovery Academy in Longton and leaving us to become a co-operative school.

"It is a merger that we don't feel we need. Mergers de-stabilise employees as they all go for the same job and the best staff leave.

"Students would also have much further to travel to school at the new location."

Margaret Lowe, chairman of the Community School Action Group, which wants to see Mitchell's current site used for the development, is also against the Willfield choice.

She said: "We will be heavily opposing the application at the planning stage. We still think that they are bringing the wrong schools together.

"They are in two different areas, and are two perfectly good schools which are making good progress. Edensor pupils won't want to come down to Bentilee because of the reputation of the area, much of which is unfounded. Mitchell pupils don't want to go over there because of the travel that is involved."

Tom Simpson, manager of Bentilee Volunteers, said the organisation used the Willfield Centre regularly for projects and luncheon clubs.

He said: "We won't be taking this lying down. Closure of the centre would affect us greatly. Where else is there nearby? We have Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre, but that is already over-subscribed."

The Bentilee site came out as the top choice for the Discovery Academy in a £150,000 study commissioned by the city council.

A total of 12 sites were looked at as a potential location for the academy, with the top three emerging as Mossfield Industrial Estate, Adderley Green and Willfield. The study showed it would cost £28.8 million to develop the Mossfield site, £28.3 million to develop the Adderley Green site and £25.9 million for Willfield.

BSF programme director Tracey Penrose-Gould said: "The brief given to the advisers was to find a site which was equidistant to suit students at both sites. We asked them to look at suitability such as whether it was big enough, accessibility and minimal planning risk.

"The results were that there was no perfect site, but this site met the criteria best."

Councillor Debra Gratton, cabinet member for children and young people's services, said it had not yet been decided whether the community centre would be demolished.

She said: "This is something that will be addressed in the planning application.

"We would be encouraging all of our schools to have community use. There are alternative facilities at the Bentilee Centre nearby."

A planning application is due in October, when residents will be able to comment.