Parents who want their children to go to a new free school in Croxley Green now face an anxious wait after plans were submitted to the Department for Education.

St Clement Danes School, in Chenies Road, Chorleywood, is leading the bid to build a new free school in Baldwins Lane, applied to the Government in October.

However, the first step required project leaders to gain the support of 180 parents, including 90 from parents whose children are currently in year three, and 90 from year four parents.

But organisers were "delighted" after almost 300 parents said they would send their child to the school in 2016/17.

Officials from the Department for Education are expected to quiz the project leaders about their plans during the next few months and they will make their final decision by March.

Dr Josephine Valentine, headteacher at St Clement Danes School, said: "We spoke to hundreds of parents during the consultation period and were delighted to see overwhelming support for a new secondary school.  

"We asked them what sort of school they wanted and it became clear that they did not want academic testing.  

"Our aim is to deliver a superb school that is accessible to local students of all abilities.  We just now need to wait for the Department for Education’s decision."

A timeline set out on the new school’s website indicates that Croxley Green Secondary School will be included in the secondary school choices for next year, with parents having until the end of October next year to select the school.

By 2022, the school is expected to have 1,200 pupils, including 300 in the Sixth Form. 

The Croxley Green Secondary School is expected to open in September 2016 and 180 students, who are currently in year 4, will be put into six forms of thirty children.

The team leading the bid said it wants to build a "state-of-the-art school with all the usual facilities such as classrooms , design and technology and science labs, a school hall, gymnasium, learning resource centre, external sports facilities" and on-site parking."

Dr Valentine added: "We are hopeful that our application will be viewed favourably by the Department for Education.  

"We submitted a comprehensive and well researched 100 page document which clearly documented the urgent need for a new secondary school in the area.  

"We would be absolutely thrilled to get the go-ahead, but all we can do in the meantime is be patient and wait for a decision."

Prospective Croxley Green School pupils will not have to take academic tests to gain entry.

Rather, the school will be looking at where children live and whether there is a sibling link.