Barnsley College principal Colin Booth has denied there is not enough support for a free school in the town.
The Chronicle has seen an e-mail sent to staff who have children aged up to three asking them to sign up to support the creation of a new primary free school.
Wellspring Academy Trust, which has Mr Booth and other college staff on the board, aims to set up the school and, as part of the application process, has to show there is parental support for it.
As a free school, funding for the building would come directly from the government.
The email sent to staff and signed by Mr Booth states: "By signing the support survey, no one is committing to anything...but you would be showing valuable support to government funding for a new primary school for Barnsley."
Plans for the school, which is being sponsored by the college, come after a shortage of primary school places were identified.
A meeting about the plan was held in the college last month but fewer than ten people turned up and the Chronicle understands Colin went to a staffroom to ask staff to attend.
He said: "We've had a whole series of events and some have been more successful than others. One of those was a meeting in the college and at that particular event, there weren't that many people there.
"I went to remind people who may have been interested by going around the staffrooms.
"I don't think it would be fair to say the majority of people there were college staff, it was a mix."
He said being the sponsor means the college supports the trust but doesn't 'pay their bills' and won't benefit financially from the school in the future.
His motives were questioned in a University and College Union newsletter which claimed the move was 'overtly political', but Mr Booth denied this.
"It's hardly political if you say there aren't enough primary schools in Barnsley and we need to do something about it," he said.
