CONSERVATIONISTS are making a bid to save Blandford buildings which could be up for demolition.

Archbishop Wake School in Park Road is due to be rebuilt on the site of St Leonard's Middle.

And Nordon in Salisbury Road, currently the home of North Dorset District Council, could become redundant if the authority moves out, as has long been discussed.

The town's civic society is anxious to ensure both survive and neither is flattened for redevelopment

Spokesperson John Barnes said it was important to save Archbishop Wake - particularly the front entrance, the arch and the gateway.

"We think it's well worth it - it's a Victorian school and we think it would be a good site for a library," he said.

"We're also very concerned about Nordon as well. We feel that Nordon is getting ruined and if they ever move we feel that the old part should be listed," he said.

"It was built by Greens the builders who had their workshop in Orchard and Dorset Street about 1900. It was magnificent work, all done by hand.

"Nordon is a beautiful house. It would be a shame to have it ruined and we think it's well worth preserving."

Mayor Gerry Chapman said the town council was behind the civic society's programme to save Blandford's history.

"The worry is a lot of our buildings are getting demolished," he said. "If the school went we haven't got a clue as to what would go up in its place.

"We don't know whether or not it meets the criteria but the town council want to support the civic society to progress the application to have it listed."

First published: December 22