BOSSES at Newquay Tretherras school have been given the all clear to sell off part of the school site to supermarket giant Tesco, it has emerged.
Michael Gove, the secretary of state for education, approved the academy's plans to use the sale to fund a "major rebuilding and refurbishment programme".
Tesco have so far remained tight-lipped on the potential deal, and leaders at the school say there will be no further announcements until after the school holidays.
An academy spokesman said governors would meet with representatives from the Education Funding Agency (EFA) in the autumn to plan the next steps, which would include a "full public consultation".
Chair of Governors, Richard Simeons, said: "This is the first step of a much longer process. We will have to wait until the autumn to discuss the implications of the approval. Meanwhile it is reassuring to know that the secretary of state has given his approval in principle."
The news will come as a bitter blow to the RAID action group (Residents Against Inappropriate Development), which believes a new superstore would increase noise and traffic pollution and force traders on nearby Chester Road out of business.
Members also say the playing fields at Tretherras should remain a community asset as they are well-used by local youngsters.
Speaking to the Cornish Guardian earlier this month, Val Martin, of RAID, said: "We would urge all concerned to make the right decision and site a supermarket in an appropriate place, not on land given to the academy in all good faith.
"We want people to be aware that the school fields, the shops, the whole area are still in danger unless we continue to challenge this totally inappropriate development by Tretherras."
It is understood that Tesco is also considering the Trevithick Manor site, opposite Morrisons, as a potential location for its new store.
Meanwhile, Tretherras also recently learned that its bid for £575,000 of funding from the EFA was successful. The money will be used to remove asbestos and replace flat roofs and window walling.
The school spokesman said: "The funding will be used for the continual maintenance in the senior end of the school, which is not part of the wider proposal."
