A catholic school will have to find an extra £50,000 a year when it becomes the first school in Essex to opt back in to council control.

St Benedict's College, in Norman Way, Colchester, will have to find the extra money as its contribution when it reverts to voluntary aided status this September.

The decision was made by the governors and follows Government plans to change the status of all schools this autumn.

Headteacher Alan Whelan said: "Our governors made the unanimous decision to opt for voluntary aided status to preserve the college's Catholic character.

"The return to aided status comes at a significant cost with local Catholic parishes having to provide 15 per cent of external building and maintenance costs."

At present there are five categories of mainstream school; county, controlled, special agreement, aided and grant-maintained.

From September 1 these will be replaced by four new categories - community, foundation, voluntary controlled and voluntary aided, all of which will be self-managing, but with their own characteristics.

It is up to individual schools to decide their own status. Mr Whelan added: "Unlike most other grant-maintained schools in Essex which are likely to opt for a new foundation status, St Benedict's chose voluntary aided status because this alone guaranteed the future Catholic control of the college.

"St Benedict's massive popularity derives in large part from its church school status and our parents were fully in support of the governors' decision."

"We see a return to aided status as a positive return to Essex local education authority, which nowadays is far more respectful to the special nature of each of its schools."

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