Parents say they were told some locals complained about the original design but council insists it was only supposed to be temporary

Parents at a Church of England school have been left furious after council bosses removed the Christian cross from the school's logo.

Oak C of E Primary School opened last month in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire after three pre-existing school merged into one huge institution.

When the school was launched, it boasted a logo with an oak tree whose branches took the shape of the cross, in a nod to its Christian connections.

But just a few weeks later, the cross was replaced with three branches, and the original logo used on large banners and school uniform prototypes had been scrapped.

Contrast: Oak Primary School original had a cross in its logo, left, but has now changed the design, right

Protest: Parents led by Chelsea Fox, left, and Nikki Trepak, right, have launched a campaign against the change of logo

The headmaster insisted that the original design was never intended to be permanent - but parents fear that it may have been removed because the council was scared of offending others.

Oak Primary School opened on May 3 after three other schools - Crosland Moor Junior, Dryclough Infants and Thornton Lodge - merged, bringing their 1,100 pupils into a single institution.

It is a voluntary controlled school, meaning that it is State-funded and governance is shared between Kirklees Council and the Church of England.

The logo combining an oak tree and a cross was adopted after a competition between the children, and was used on welcome banners as well as on stickers given out to the pupils to put on their uniforms.

Bu when a school newsletter was sent out last week, it had been dropped in favour of a subtly different version without the cross.

Headmaster: Dave Bendall launched welcome banners featuring the cross design on them

The new badge will feature on uniforms to be worn from this autumn, even though uniforms with the original logo had previously been advertised online.

Parents say they have been told that some locals complained about overtly religious imagery being used on the school's logo.

'Staff have said people have complained about the cross yet the head is saying it was only temporary,' said Niki Trepak, who has four children at the school.

'Why would you make temporary banners and produce temporary uniforms?

'I've got quite a few Muslim friends at the school and I asked them, "Does the cross offend you?" and they said no.

'If it's going to remain a Church of England school it should keep the cross.'

Chelsea Fox, another parent at the school, added: 'I'm not only disappointed, I'm disgusted. It has remained a Church of England school as it is the church that keeps it open. That needs to be given more respect.'

Headmaster David Bendall insisted that the logo with a cross was just a 'temporary design', adding that the oak tree was a better symbol because it represents 'many beliefs'.

Uniform: Prototype designs featured online showed the original design featuring a cross

He also said that the decision to change the logo had been approved by the Diocese of Leeds, which oversees the running of the school along with the local council.

Mr Bendall said in a statement: 'The logo featuring a cross was a temporary design whilst we made the transition to becoming Oak Primary School.

'It was not confirmed as the final logo and was amended to give more prominence to the tree, which not only reflects the school name but is also an ancient symbol representing many beliefs.

'Changing the design to include three branches also meant we could signify the way Oak Primary was formed, which was three schools joining together as one.

'The decision was made jointly by governors and the diocese and the change does not in any way alter the identity or ethos of our school.

'We are a very diverse community school and it's central to our ethos that children of all backgrounds are treated exactly the same.