DOZENS of residents from a north Lancashire village have expressed anger at what they claim was a lack of consultation over a special residential school's plans to move youngsters into their rural community.

Nether Kellet's Old School Room was packed during Wednesday's parish council meeting as villagers challenged the school's head teacher over why they had had so little information about the scheme.

The meeting was told that Ridgway Park School in Silverdale, which takes children aged from 11 to 16 with emotional and behavioural difficulties and associated learning problems, wanted to place four youngsters in a house in Ashgrove in the village.

Residents were also told that no special planning permission was required for the scheme, and head teacher Barry Bridden said the purchase of the house was due to have been completed earlier that evening.

Villager Keith Moore drew applause when he challenged Mr Bridden over a comment that the development was not meant to be at anyone else's expense.

"We have people who live around there and all of a sudden, because of Ridgway Park, their house has been devalued."

He questioned whether near neighbours would be able to sell their properties.

"Ridgway Park aren't bothered about things like that, but only bothered about the money they make out of them.

What have you to say about that?"

Mr Bridden said he had nothing to say.

Another resident raised the question of the deeds to the house, which he claimed specified that it was not possible to run a business from the property.

Mr Bridden said he did not have that information but agreed that it sounded very important.

Other residents were concerned about the impact on the village and particularly other children.

Mr Bridden said the 12 and 13-year-old boys would be supervised at all times by adult carers.

He outlined the special educational needs of children at Ridgway Park and said: "Are we going to have naughty children living in Ashgrove? The answer to that is no."

He said there would be " no delinquents", and the house would be the closest to being a family environment that the youngsters would have had.

It would be giving them a second chance at life and the hope was that they would be fostered.

Mr Bridden said it would be unfair if the youngsters were labelled as living in the house, "where all those bad children live".

He agreed that if given the chance again he would have consulted more

fully.