THE long-suffering residents of St John's have waited years for the resolution of the Christopher Whitehead High School relocation saga.

The will-it, won't-it move plan has been kicking around for what seems like forever.

The conflicting claims of rival supermarkets to build on, or near, the school's land and the differing views of the city and county councils over the whole affair have clouded the waters considerably.

Why has this situation dragged on?

This country's planning regulations - drawn up in the late 1940s to deal with the post-war boom - are woefully inadequate when it comes to the realities of life in the 21st Century.

They need to be reviewed - and soon.

Worcestershire County Council has now agreed that - should it need to do so - it will compulsory purchase the 24 acres of land it requires at Earl's Court Farm to site the replacement school.

This comes just days before the start of the public inquiry, on Tuesday, May 18, into the school's proposed move.

The relocation of a school - especially a substantial high school - involves an enormous amount of upheaval.

What the school's pupils, teachers, parents and neighbours could have done without, is the associated amount of uncertainty this inability to make a collective decision has generated.

A school is at the heart of a community and plans to relocate it should be made with the backing of the whole community - and with decisiveness.

This has gone on far too long.