YORK'S schools should be opened up to city residents and community groups, councillors have said.

City of York Council's shadow executive are calling for greater community use of the city's primaries and secondaries.

As previously reported in The Press, the council's Labour opposition want to give York children more educational opportunities outside the school day, and also to give adults more access to school buildings and sports facilities.

The matter was discussed at yesterday's meeting of the shadow executive at The Guildhall.

Labour leader Dave Merrett said: "In terms of child educational opportunities, we need a varied programme of activities on offer after the school day such as homework clubs, music tuition, dance and drama, visits to museums, provision to learning a foreign language, and business and enterprise activities.

"For adults, we need wider community access to ICT, sports and arts facilities and more adult learning."

Coun Merrett said the Government had supported greater community use of schools, and he wanted to see it accelerated in York.

He said: "The Labour Government has long been behind the community use of schools, most notably in 2005 when the then-Education Secretary Ruth Kelly said I want to see every school reaching out to their community'.

"Local Labour welcome the increasing community use of schools in York, with children having access to educational opportunities outside the regular school day, but we want to see school buildings and sporting facilities more available for the use of adults too."

He said: "York Labour councillors have set themselves the challenge to make the transition to extended schools by 2008, and I am so pleased that the Government made a recent commitment in their Budget last month that £10.7 billion more capital and revenue funding is to be invested in schools, colleges, universities and children's services by 2011.

"York will hugely benefit from this in terms of more funding for community use of schools."

The shadow executive yesterday considered a report by council officers, which suggested the accommodation presently used for adult learning could be better.

Coun Merrett said: "We need to ensure this accommodation is improved, making best use of the Government's major investment in modernising and rebuilding old schools.

"Wider use of sports halls and playing fields could also help address some of the issues round the health agenda such as obesity and lack of exercise, and possibly social problems with disengaged teenagers."