Two Oxford primary schools are set to be pulled down and rebuilt at a clost of almost £13m.

Oxfordshire County Council has asked the Government for £12.8m to demolish Bayards Hill Primary School, in Barton, and Wood Farm Primary School, and replace them with new buildings.

If the bid is successful, building work could start in the summer of next year and be completed by December 2010.

Both schools were opened in the 1950s but the council says they need replacing because the classrooms do not meet modern needs and parts of the buildings, like the heating systems, are worn out.

Last night, headteachers, governors and parents welcomed the plans, which form part of a strategy to improve primary education.

Michael Waine, the county council's cabinet member for schools improvement, said: "A tremendous amount of work has been put into the strategy and we're anticipating the Government will give the plans the go-ahead.

"Bayards Hill and Wood Farm are the first on the list, because they're situated in areas of social deprivation and, as far as education is concerned, the buildings at both schools are not fit for purpose."

He said the plans for Bayards Hill were well advanced but at Wood Farm a decision still needed to be made about whether to include youth and community facilities and even a doctors' surgery in the new complex.

Wood Farm headteacher David Lewin said: "Our buildings have reached the end of their natural life.

"They were built in the 1950s and we need a school fit for the 21st century.

"We want everything in one building, but we're also looking for a school building that gives us the flexibility to work with individual pupils and small groups, as well as state-of-the-art classrooms."

County councillor Liz Brighouse, who has been a governor at Wood Farm for 30 years, said the community was very excited by the plan.

She added: "There's a desperate need to replace the buildings."

Bayards Hill headteacher Keith Ponsford declined to comment on the £6.4m investment in his school, but chairman of governors Mike Parkinson said anything other than new buildings would not be practical or cost-effective.

He said: "It's incredibly good news, because at the moment we have got a primary school existing in secondary school buildings and a lot of the infrastructure is very dilapidated.

"We want to integrate all our classrooms into one workable building, to help build a strong primary school ethos."

Bayards Hill parent Sarah Phillips, 33, of Claymond Road, said: "It's brilliant news. It's just what the community needs."

There are 270 pupils at Bayards Hill and 420 at Wood Farm.