EDUCATION bosses have been accused of ignoring people's concerns over plans for a new Muslim faith school -- and omitting them from a key report.

Now backbench councillors have demanded Blackburn with Darwen Council's executive board receives a more balanced consultation report and reconsiders its decision to support the creation of a council-controlled faith school.

Labour councillors and education professionals blasted a report on the consultation for excluding comments opposing the proposals.

In the report presented to the executive board last month, leading councillors were told that there was generally support for creating a Muslim faith school in Blackburn, because it would give Muslims the same choice as Christian parents.

But a detailed report relating to written responses to the two-year consultation which was compiled and only released to councillors on request, listed further concerns.

The faith school scheme -- which would involve an existing Muslim girls school, Tauheedul, coming under Local Education Authority control -- was approved last month.

But ten backbench councillors demanded that the eduction overview and scrutiny committee be given the chance to discuss the proposals on the grounds that little consideration had been given to the potential impact on existing schools.

They also feared that councillors had not been involved enough in discussions and that the proposal would lead to the polarisation of school communities.

After a three-hour meeting, councillors on the scrutiny committee have now told the executive board to reconsider the decision because of concerns over the "flawed" report to committee.

Labour councillor Dave Harling said: "Looking at the detailed report on written consultations and the report put to the committee, I can see important facts have been left out.

"There is mention in the letters about people feeling they could not speak their mind at consultation meetings for fear of being called racist.

"There are lots of other negative criticisms in here which has not been addressed in the report which went to the executive board.

"Unless a balanced report is put forward, the whole consultation is flawed."

Labour colleague Coun Stephen Greenwood said: "The report which went to the executive board does not even reflect what letters have been sent in.

"Because the one report is supposedly confidential, it is very important the report to the board reflects what was said."

Today, Coun Mahfooz Hussain, executive member for education, said: "There is no truth in the claim that we have missed things out on purpose.

"The consultation was far-reaching."

And Peter Morgan, director of education, said that he felt the report was also fair.

The executive board must also address concerns about allowing a single sex school into LEA control, something the council has spent 30 years moving away from. Coun Hussain will respond to the scrutiny committee's recommendations at a future meeting of the executive board.