KING David School campus is on the brink of a major rebuilding project that will see part of the school relocated in Prestwich.

Proposals have been revealed for the infant school, junior school and nursery to move to a new campus off Sheepfoot Lane, within the perimeter of Heaton Park.

Relocating the primary age children will free up space on the school's current site in Bury Old Road, Crumpsall, for a new high school and sixth form as part of a Government "Building Schools for the Future" scheme.

The proposals were agreed in principle at an executive meeting of Manchester City Council on Wednesday following recommendations from the director of children's services.

Chairman of governors at King David, Joshua Rowe, said: "We are very excited by this and hugely appreciative of the decision.

"However, we are still in the early stages and there will be full consultation. There is an acute shortage of space at the current site, particularly for the high school as numbers have grown from about 250 to 800 over the past 12 years."

Mr Rowe said that the once "failing" school was threatened with closure in 1992/93 but performance has been turned around and King David is now in the top five in the country, boasting almost 100 per cent pass rate in GCSEs.

He continued: "The education of the kids has been tremendous and will continue to be so; we just have not got the space to develop sport and leisure activities.

"We are always accepting new children into the school and they come from as far away as Nottingham, Sheffield and Leeds each day."

Mr Rowe said that if everything goes according to plan, work on the new infant and junior school could start in 2007.

They would be built on a site currently occupied by the Parkside Training Centre, within the grounds of Heaton Park, which means the school's catchment areas would remain the same and pupils would not have to move off-site to facilitate building work.

While the Jewish school is looking to expand, Mr Rowe was keen to point out that the new 420-pupil primary school would take up no more space than the current footprint of the Parkside Centre once a primary school itself.

The proposals have been welcomed by Sedgley Park councillor Gill Campbell: "King David campus is a centre of excellence which offers world class education opportunities to many local families.The proposal for a new nursery, infants and junior school to be built on the site of the Parkside Training Centre should be supported subject to addressing local residents' concerns about traffic congestion."

Coun Campbell said she planned to meet with senior Manchester councillors as a matter of urgency to seek assurances about a full consultation involving affected Prestwich residents.

She is also to arrange a public meeting so that residents will have the chance to ask questions and register their opinions.

Coun Campbell added: "It is important that we do everything to avoid a situation which pitches the school against local residents. I will be doing all I can to bring the parties together to build a positive relationship."

Sheepfoot Lane resident Linda Sullivan, who is on the Heaton Park Management Committee, declined to comment on the impact the new school would have on residents until further information was released.

The proposals for King David follow major changes at two other Jewish schools in Prestwich. Manchester Jewish Grammar School is currently being rebuilt on its Charlton Avenue site, off Bury New Road, and Bury and Whitefield Jewish Primary recently revealed plans to move to greenbelt land off Sergeants Lane in Whitefield.