Brodetsky primary has received planning permission for a £1.5m development, paving the way for a potential Jewish high school in Leeds.

Planning consent has been granted by Leeds City Council for a combined development which will mean a new home for Jewish youth club, The Zone. The one-and-a-half form entry school will get new art and food technology rooms, media room and new corridors around the Silman Hall.

The redevelopment will be funded by the community. But chair of governors Alan Dunwell warned the project could still be a pipedream if enough funds are not raised from donations. He said: "I would urge all those who are in a position to help to contact the fundraising committee so that the vision might become a reality."

Headteacher Jeremy Dunford said he hoped the new development would be done by September 2011, with the Zone building to be "designed by the city's young people" finished by April 2012.

The development will mean that now immediate expansion will be necessary if permission is granted for a Jewish senior school, through the Government's Free School scheme. A minimum of 15 pupils are required for a first intake year to make it viable. Campaigners hope a senior school could open as early as 2012