The amalgamation of Waddon Infant and Duppas Junior Schools has been approved by parents, carers, teachers and governors.

A full consultation was given at a meeting of the council's cabinet on Monday night before the amalgamation in 2009.

Council plans for the areas surrounding the schools involve providing additional community services In Waddon and Monks Hill, including a children's centre in each area.

Should the plans go ahead, Waddon and Duppas schools would be amalgamated and operate on the Duppas site alongside one of the children's centres.

Red Gates Special School would be relocated to the site of the present Gilbert Scott Infant School, while a children's centre would installed at Gilbert Scott Primary in South Croydon.

Croydon's cabinet member for education Councillor Maria Gatland said: "I am very pleased with the outcome of the consultation as we are clearly one step closer to improving the quality of early years and primary education in the Waddon area and now have an opportunity to relocate Red Gates Special School to more suitable accommodation.

"We still have quite a way to go to turn this vision into reality and we will continue to work all the stakeholders as the project develops."

Meanwhile, the proposal to close Selhurst Mathematics and Computing Specialist School because of falling numbers was endorsed by Croydon Council's cabinet on Monday.

Concerns about the future viability of the school were reported last November with the results of a formal consultation due to be reported to the Schools Organisation Committee, the decision making body, today (Wednesday).

A number of suggestions were put forward, including opening the school to girls to increase numbers, but the council said there was no guarantee sufficient numbers would be attracted without significant impact on other schools in the north of the borough.

If the School Organisation Committee supports the proposal, the school will close in August 2008.