Agenda item

Full Application - Erection of a New School Building Including Primary School, Secondary School and Sports Hall Facility, Associated Site Re-Development Including New Pedestrian and Vehicular Access and Playing Surfaces and Demolition Works to Existing High School Building at Holywell High School,Strand Walk, Holywell (051719)

Decision:

            That planning permission be granted subject to the conditions detailed in the report of the Head of Planning.

 

 

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Planning in respect of this application which had been the subject of a site visit on 12 May 2014.  The usual consultations had been undertaken and the responses received detailed in the report.

 

            The officer detailed the background to the report and explained that the new school would provide a combined through school for infants, junior and secondary school pupils.  The proposed primary school would be single storey with the secondary school being three storey and a video of the proposals was displayed for the Committee and those present to view.  He commented on the Scheduled Ancient Monuments which would be dealt with by CADW and added that all of the issues around the application had been considered extensively. 

 

            Mr. A. Green spoke in support of the scheme but he was disappointed that the area currently used by the community for activities such as dog walking was not being retained in the proposal.  He said that the area was often used and was an important facility for the community and its removal would affect the wellbeing of the community.  He suggested that an area be retained to allow walking and dog walking to continue.

 

            Councillor Peter Curtis, the Local Member welcomed the application which would be one of the biggest investments in Holywell and the building would be for the children of the future.  He said that some of the concerns raised had been addressed but others had not reached a satisfactory conclusion such as the loss of the playing field, which he hoped could be rectified.  The traffic situation was also of great concern, particularly on Strand Walk and Penymaes Road.  He requested that he be advised and consulted on any proposals to complete the works on the road, which he felt was dangerous.  He sought a cast iron guarantee that the area where the current school sat would be used for sports facilities when the school was knocked down and not for housing.  Councillor Curtis, having earlier declared an interest then left the meeting.    

 

            Councillor Gareth Roberts proposed the recommendation for approval which was duly seconded.  He congratulated all who had been involved with the application and welcomed the exciting scheme.  He spoke of the three areas of concern which were the play area, the capacity at the school and the access to the site, all of which had been addressed. 

 

            Councillor Chris Bithell welcomed the comments made and said that the proposal would address a number of issues.  He said that a ‘walk-through’ tour had been well received by Members, parents and teachers and had given a huge injection of confidence.  In referring to paragraphs 7.32 to 7.34 on the community use, he was confident it would continue but said that as the safety of the children was paramount, free access into the school grounds should not be permitted and exercising dogs on the sports field was unacceptable.  However, use of the facilities by local teams could continue.  Councillor Mike Peers also welcomed the proposal but said that community involvement was important.  He asked why the proposal appeared to only show solar panels on the roof of the high school area. 

 

            In response to the comments made, the officer said that the panels would be put onto the taller building to prevent any overshadowing from trees and what had been proposed exceeded BREEAM standards.  On the issue of community involvement, the sport facilities would be available outside of school hours and would be managed.  However there would be a period during the development process (September 2016 to February 2017) where the pitches would not be available for use by the school or the community.  The teams that used the pitches had been made aware of the situation and had been advised that they would need to make alternative arrangements.    The area referred to by Councillor Curtis where the school was currently positioned was to become an all weather pitch and would therefore not be used for housing.  On the issue of dog walking, he concurred that access onto the school grounds could not be permitted but said that the site was surrounded by footpaths and woods and dog walkers would be encouraged to use the paths to exercise their dogs instead of using the school field.  The proposal included a new footpath on part of Penymaes Road which would link with Abbotts Way.  A traffic impact assessment had considered all aspects and traffic calming was proposed near where the access would be created.     

           

RESOLVED:

 

            That planning permission be granted subject to the conditions detailed in the report of the Head of Planning.

 

 

Supporting documents: