THE FORMER headteacher of a Burnley school today blasted education chiefs over plans to get rid of the area's only Catholic sixth form.

Gerry Martland has denounced the move to get rid of the sixth form at St Theodore's RC High School - where he was head until his retirement in 1993 - as "educational vandalism".

His attack came ahead of a meeting being staged at the Ormerod Road school tonight at which staff and parents are hoping to form a campaign group to fight the plans.

Secondary education is being revamped in Burnley and Pendle with existing schools being merged into larger "super-schools" by 2006. Under the scheme, known as "Building Schools for the Future", St Theodore's will merge with the all-girl Catholic St Hilda's, which will move from Coal Clough Lane to share a site with its all-boy counterpart.

But the move will see the sixth form at St Theodore's close. In future, Catholic pupils from Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale will have to go to a much larger multi-faith sixth form college based in the Barden area of Burnley.

Mr Martland, of Red Lees Road, Cliviger, said: "The proposed demise of St Theodore's Sixth Form is typical of the educational vandalism contained in 'Building Schoools for the Future'. Are tradition, loyalty, commitment, academic and sporting success, community involvement and moral and spiritual guidance to be sacrificed on the altar of social engineering?

"The qualities of this sixth form, recently reported on highly favourably by Ofsted inspectors, have been painstakingly built up over a number of years. In 1967 19 pupils formed the school's first A Level group and were housed in a pre-fab building in a corner of the main site.

"Early success resulted in the construction of a purpose-built establishment in 1973 which was soon so overcrowded that in 1979 extensions were necessary. Today there are 270 pupils of both sexes in attendance drawn from 14 local schools and gaining examination success far in advance of the national average. What is the sense in wilfully destroying such a centre of excellence?

"It is to be hoped that the Roman Catholic community in the area, as well as parents of other religious faiths, will voice their protests about such impending stupidity."

The meeting at St Theodore's will take place at 7pm.