PLANS for a new primary school to meet the needs of an expanding Ledbury have been shelved.

Instead, the existing Ledbury Primary School looks set to be expanded on its present site, which has extensive grounds.

As far back in 2010, during consultations for Herefordshire Council planning blueprint for the next two decades, the Core Strategy, county planners envisaged the provision of a new 210-place primary school to the north of Ledbury viaduct, where Bloor hopes to build 625 new homes.

But at a meeting of the town's economic development and development committee last week, Bloor's planning consultant, Guy Wakefield said: "Herefordshire Council has advised us, on a number of occasions, there is no request for a school to be provided on the site."

Concern about school provision in an expanding Ledbury was raised by Cllr Tony Bradford, who said: "Our schools are all at capacity. It was said it was possible there would be a new school.

"Some Ledbury children can't get places at their local primary."

But Cllr Bob Barnes, chairing the meeting said: "Ledbury Primary will expand on its present site."

It is not the first time that the site, off Longacres, has been expanded.

It is currently also the location for the Ledbury Family Centre, run by Herefordshire Council.

But with 321 houses proposed for south of the town, and 625 for the north, Ledbury looks set for a major population boost in the next few years.

If the majority of new Ledbury householders are families, the population could well rise from a present level of around 11,000 to 15,000.

Of the expected incoming 4000 new people, around 2000 of those could be children.