A NEW £1.4m primary school is to be built at Hythe following a major shake-up of education in the Waterside parishes.

Hampshire County Council is planning to transform the site occupied by Langdown Junior School in Ashford Crescent by extending and refurbishing the existing facilities.

It follows the county council's decision to merge Langdown infant and junior schools following a sharp drop in pupil numbers in the New Forest.

The junior school is due to close on December 31.

The following day the infant school in Lytton Road will become a 210-place primary school, initially using the infant and junior school buildings.

Redevelopment of the Ashford Crescent site is expected to begin in the autumn of 2005.

Purpose-built accommodation will provide the primary school with music and drama facilities, a food technology area and new pre-school facilities to replace those at the infant school.

Councillor Don Allen, the county council's executive member for education, said the infant school buildings were likely to be vacated by September 2006.

He added: "Staff and governors at the infant school are ready for the challenge of taking the magic of the infant school forward and developing a strong and successful primary school."

The headteacher will be Colin Stevens, currently head of the infant school.

He said: "This is an exciting opportunity for the Langdown community, who have been very supportive of our plans.

"We are looking forward to working together to build a successful primary school."

As reported in the Daily Echo, four other Waterside schools will also be affected by the county council's review of education in the area.

The infant and junior schools at Blackfield and Holbury will be closed and replaced by new primary schools on the junior school sites.

However, Fawley Infant School and Manor Infant School, Holbury, have both escaped the threat of closure.