MARLBOROUGH'S battle to get the two halves of its secondary school amalgamated on one site may be nearly over after St John's School reached agreement with developers to sell the lower school for housing.

Patrick Hazlewood, head of St John's School and Community College, said 19 firms had expressed an interest in acquiring the 14 acre site in Chopping Knife Lane and contracts are about to be signed with Prowting Homes of Middlesex.

Until the contracts, which are subject to planning consent, are completed later this month the school will not say how much the firm is paying for the 4.25 acres occupied by the present school buildings with an option to purchase the remaining 9.5 acres later. Dr Hazlewood said: We will be getting far more money than we expected.

The sale of the smaller part of the site, where it is expected Prowting will seek planning consent for between 30 to 40 homes, will produce enough funds for new buildings at Orchard Road to replace the former secondary modern school in Chopping Knife Lane.

The school hopes the eventual sale of the remainder of the lower school site, if local plan modifications are agreed to permit the development, will produce funds for the Orchard Road buildings to be replaced as well. Up to 150 new homes may be built on the Chopping Knife Lane site.

Dr Hazlewood, who took over as head four years ago, said he would have liked to see the new school completely finished by 2003 but said: I have to be realistic so therefore we are looking at 2004/5 for the whole scheme to be completed.

The re-development of the lower school is expected to cost between £5 million and £6 million.