Sandwell Council are set to open a new children's centre' in Cradley Heath - despite last week admitting another nursery just over a mile away was too expensive to maintain.

The News reported two weeks ago how Timbertree Nursery could be axed because it was draining resources at Timbertree Primary School, Valley Road.

But now council bosses have announced multi-million pound plans to build five new children's centres across the borough - including one down the road at Temple Meadow School, Wright's Lane.

It is thought the move could threaten new intakes at Timbertree Primary School to such an extent it will end up closing.

The centre at Temple Meadow will be complete by 2008 and comes at a cost of £3.5m, including the other four centres.

Councillor Ian Jones, cabinet member for schools and lifelong learning, said: "The nursery on its present site is very close to Sandwell's border with Dudley, which means many of its youngsters are drawn from there and they subsequently don't go on to transfer automatically to Timbertree Primary.

"Temple Meadow as a location for a children's centre has been chosen after extensive consultations with the relevant agencies and interested parties.

"It makes perfect sense to locate the centre there.

"The consultations show it is the best site for a centre with Sandwell children.

"It is also in line with government policy that centres should be as close as possible to the communities they serve."

He had previously said the council were considering closure of Timbertree nursery to help Timbertree School reduce its deficit budget and that it took up a disproportionate amount of the school's finances'.

Timbertree parent Carol Attewell said: "Our school will still lose out.

"Over this side of Cradley Heath we will still have no facilities.

"At Timbertree we have a huge playing field that is never even used.

"If a nursery opens at Temple Meadow, the children will end up going to that school.

"Our numbers are just going to dwindle and I can see our school closing."