THE future of a struggling Moss Side high school has been secured, after a Christian charity stepped in as a major sponsor to transform it into one of the country's first city academies.

Manchester education chiefs announced their intention to relaunch Ducie High School as one of the country's first city academies last year.

But their plans - which would bring with it investment of up to £7m and would put the running of the school in the hands of a public private partnership - relied on them finding a sponsor.

For the past 12 months officials have been searching for a business or charity to come on board, alongside the Manchester Science Park, which was quick to support the scheme but unable to stump up the necessary £1.4m element of private funding.

And today the Department for Education and Skills was set to announce that the Church Schools Company - which boasts the former Conservative education minister Dame Angela Rumbold as one of its directors - had been accepted as the main sponsor of the scheme.

Campaign

The announcement comes a year after the M.E.N. launched its own Backing Ducie campaign in support of the struggling school - which had high truancy rates, was unpopular with local parents, had low exam results, spiralling debts and was heading towards closure.

And Ewan Harper, chief executive of the Church Schools Company, says the depth of support for the school from community organisations was a key element in their decision to support Ducie.

He said: "We could see that this was a school that needed a genuine fresh start and we were very impressed by the number of organisations within the community - including the Manchester Evening News - that were trying to save the school and transform it into something different.

"I got the feeling that if local people really wanted it to happen it would have a real chance."

City academies have been designed by the government to replace struggling or failing comprehensives in some of the country's poorest districts.

Private firms or charities have to provide a fifth of the start-up costs while the state pays the rest, and in return they take responsibility for running the schools.

Manchester's chief education officer David Johnston said: "The new school will continue to be very much a part of the whole Manchester family of schools and will help further raise educational attainment in the city."