Plans to build a new sixth form teaching block at Myton School have been approved by Warwick District Council despite concerns about the environmental impact of the development.

The new block, which will accommodate up to 190 extra pupils across 12 new classrooms, had been recommended for approval by district planners.

And whilst the scheme was granted permission, councillors expressed their disappointment that the school would not be built to a higher standard.

"I'd like to express my disappointment that here we have a public building and we are trying to approve it on the hottest every day recorded in the UK and it seems to make only limited provision to mitigation of the impacts of climate breakdown rather than climate change," said Cllr James Kennedy at last night's (July 20) WDC planning committee meeting.

"I appreciate as a planning committee that we cannot legislate in any way for that, but I think we should be writing strongly to the school - which after all is a public body - and saying they should do better."

Whilst the new building, which will temporarily house pupils from the delayed Oakley Grove School, will include air source heat pumps, no definitive plans have been included for solar panels nor further energy reducing measures.

Cllr Colin Quinney added: "It is really more than disappointing, it is worrying that the council which has committed to the climate emergency resolution that we have, is asking us to approve something that is so very disappointing and so very below what we should expect if it is a real emergency."

Councillors did include a condition in the plans to increase the number of spaces for cycling storage.

And members said they hoped pupils would be encouraged to travel to the site by walking or by bicycle.

Cllr David Norris said: "I would also hope that the proposed new path and cycleway which should be happening imminently will enable, whether it be Warwick Gates or whichever students go there, to use walking to school as their way of getting to school."

Warwickshire County Council has already announced funding for the £6million project, despite county councillors also raising environmental concerns about the development.

And speaking on behalf of Warwick Town Council, Cllr Stephen Cross said: "Through the expansion of the campus together with the expansion of the student and staff numbers has presented the a stage by stage reduction in the status of the local environment available to the residents of the area, which is described in many of the negative submissions that they have made."

The application was approved by eight votes to one.