A NEW school and community centre will be a success despite national criticism of the Private Finance Initiative scheme used to secure the money for it, a Bolton education official says.

The £9.5 million Castle Hill Community Learning Resources Centre in Tonge Moor, which is being built under the scheme, will include a new school and nursery, library, adult education facilities, and a youth and community centre all under one roof.

In a new report, the Audit Commission has warned that schools built by profit-making firms under the flagship public-private scheme are "significantly worse" in terms of space, heating, lighting and acoustics than new traditionally-funded primary and secondary schools.

But Chris Swift, assistant director for policy and resources at Bolton education authority, said that without the scheme the Castle Hill project would not have been able to go ahead.

Mr Swift said: "So far everything has been very positve. Without the Private Finance Initiative we would not be able to rebuild Castle Hill."

Bolton Council has insisted on certain specifications for the building and, because it will also be used by the community, the school hall will be much bigger than normal as it will be also be used by adults, young people and the youth service.

Under the initiative, public buildings are built by private firms. They are contracted to maintain them for 25 to 30 years and can expect to make profits once they meet their obligations.

While the local education authority usually remains the legal owner of the building, firms can expect to make regular profits over that time.

More than 25 new schools have been built in England since 1997 under the initiative and 500 more are to be built or refurbished in the next three years at a cost of £2.4 billion. There are currently no other plans for school buildings in Bolton to be funded by the scheme.