PLANS for a joint Church of England-Roman Catholic academy in Telford, Shropshire, have gained gov­ernment approval. The £14-million-pound academy is due to open in 2014, replacing an RC secondary school in the area, which is to close.

It would provide the first Anglican secondary places in Telford, which has ten C of E primary schools, the Lich­field diocesan director of edu­cation, Colin Hopkins, said. “The local authority was keen to have a joint school, and there has been ex­cellent co-operation between our two dioceses.”

The balance between denomin­ational and open places at the acad­emy had yet to be decided, Mr Hop­kins said, but it would admit those children who would have attended the closing school, and places would be designated for children from C of E and other Christian families.

Telford, a growing population hub, is said to be the most secular town in England because it has few places of worship, relative to its size.