An anti-free school campaign group have collected almost 200 signatures in four days in an attempt to stop four new free schools being built in the borough.

Our Community, Our Schools, have concerns over the lack of community consultation and transparency involved in securing deals with the Department of Education.

The group wants to see the council work with existing schools to ensure they can expand to cater for the demand of secondary school places without the need for, what they say, are divisive and damaging new free schools being built.

Campaigner Jonathan White said in May: “It’s crazy there’s no transparent process for consultation to this point.

“Any other major body would have to submit a proposal and have a consultation, but these rules don’t apply when opening a school.”

Our Community, Our Schools was previously known as Waltham Forest Defend State Schools following their wish to become a voice on wider education issues.

The petition can be found at www.gopetition.com/petitions/support-waltham-forests-local-community-schools.html