PARENTS will get the chance to help choose which type of school educates their children when two rival bids compete head to head tonight.

In an unprecedented move for Lancashire, which could be dubbed ‘School Idol’, the right to build and operate a £5.2m school at Buckshaw Village will be open to competition.

Bids to run the school have been received from both Lancashire County Council and a joint Church of England/Methodist submission.

The church bid has relaxed its admissions policy as part of its plans to run the school.

Admission will be completely open, with the criteria for church attendance being removed.

The rival plans will be presented at a public meeting Wednesday, February 4 at 6pm in the Oak Room at the Woodlands Conference Centre, Southport Road, Chorley.

The competition aspect on building new schools was only introduced by new legislation in 2006 and the Buckshaw contest will be one of the first of its kind in the country.

The decision as to who will operate the school will be taken by the Office of the School Adjudicator, (OSA), who will preside at the meeting.

A spokesman for the OSA said the process would have strict guidelines.

He said: “Both of the bids will get 15 minutes to set out their plans before questions are taken from the floor.

“There is then the possibly another week in which the adjudicator will take written submissions before a decision will be made.”

The new school, will be used by the planned 2,400 households in the village and be able to take 210 pupils, with the possibility of expansion.

It is set to open on September 1, 2010. To meet that deadline, work would begin in May or June this year.

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: “This is the first competition of its kind in Lancashire and it has attracted a lot of interest.

“We await the decision of the schools adjudicator and feel sure that the children of Buckshaw Village can look forward to an excellent new school, whatever the outcome.”

The Blackburn Church of England Diocese/Chorley Methodist circuit bid said their vision would be an two floor, eight classroom school with a distinctive Christian character.