An application to create a new free school has been submitted to the government.

A total of 710 families have registered support online for the concept of The Ongar Academy, which has been created by a collective of teachers and parents.

A total of 12 people have raised objections to the proposals some of which voice concerns about increased traffic congestion.

They will attend an interview with the Department for Education as part of the next stage of the process.

The group predict there will be at least 1,132 children looking for a school place in the catchment area within seven years.

Project leader Jeff Banks said: “It’s really hard work, but we have an incredibly dedicated team and won’t stop until the job is done.

“We want to thank the many hundreds of local people, community groups and businesses who have got behind the campaign and supported us; we could not have got this far without them”.

Four sites are being considered for the school, with the preferred location near Ongar Leisure Centre in Fyfield Road.

Another area under consideration is a building at Fyfield Business Park.

The secondary school is scheduled to open in September 2015, with a target intake of 120 pupils a year.

The group meet next week to start with the recruitment of a principal and project manager.