HUNDREDS of people around the world have contributed money to York City Supporters' Trust to help save York City Football Club from extinction.

Many of them must be more than a little surprised to see £10,000 of this money being given to support Oaklands School's bid to become a so-called sports college (Evening Press, July 12).

I didn't give and collect money to subsidise the government's unwillingness adequately to fund education. Still less did I give and collect in order to fund specialist schools which are a backdoor reintroduction of selection in education.

Education is a public service and should be funded publicly, not through charitable donations. That these donations were given for an entirely different purpose adds insult to injury.

York City Supporters Trust should stick to what it was formed for and what it is good at - saving York City Football Club. That task will not have been achieved until the club is securely housed in its new stadium.

Frank Ormston

Waverley Street

York

Updated: 11:52 Wednesday, July 17, 2002