The headmaster of Danesfield School in Williton has said public reaction to the school’s expansion proposals has been ‘positive’ despite the scheme being put on hold after fewer parents turned out to vote on the plans than expected.

The school was consulting with parents about the possibility of setting up a free school, which would allow pupils to stay on until the age of 16, within the existing middle school site.

A free school is a new school set up in response to demand from parents. Unlike an Academy, which is an existing school that converts, a free school would be an entirely new school that would place more importance on letting parents influence how things are run.

Ian Bradbury, the school’s headmaster and driving force behind the proposals, said the plan to submit a bid to open the new school in September 2013 had been put on hold due to “a number of factors”.

But he added that half the parents who attended the consultation meeting voted in favour of the free school plan.

Mr Bradbury said: “Fewer parents turned up than we had expected but we also had a number of governors missing from our meeting due to illness and so we felt a fuller discussion would be needed at a later time.

“However, one in two people who attended did vote in favour. It’s given us a feeling about the level of support, which we feel has been good. One in two parents saying they would send their children to the new free school can certainly be seen as a positive thing.

“Our next move will be to consider our options over the course of the next two to four months.”

West Somerset Community College principal Nick Swann, who previously spoke out against the plans, said: “They made a wise decision in stepping back from their proposals.

“We need a plan moving forward that unites all the schools in wanting the very best for children across West Somerset.”