New Croft school in Swindon safety fears dismissed
Claims that unfinished building work on a new Swindon school will be a safety hazard to pupils when it opens have been dismissed by the local authority.
Croft School in Old Town is due to open on 3 September but a large section of building work is still going on.
Colin Doubleday, of the Piper's Area Residents' Association, said children "should not be going to school next to a building site".
Swindon Borough Council's David Renard said the work will be finished on time.
He said: "I'm not going to agree to it opening if it isn't safe for children to come. But the experts who are working on this project are absolutely confident that they can deliver it in time for the school to open on 3 September."
The 420-place primary school project has been unpopular since it was first announced in 2011.
Campaigners said the area would not be able to cope with the increased volume of traffic a new school would bring.
When planning for the school was approved, the local authority pledged to set aside £500,000 to deal with traffic access concerns.