abcde Report to: Buckinghamshire County Council Development Control Committee AGENDA ITEM 8 Date 9 April 2002 Title Author Electoral Divisions Affected Recommendation Resources Appraisal Proposed Demolition of Gym and Construction of Single Adult Education Extension at Mill Brook Adult Education Centre, High Wycombe Application No. CC/08/02 Bucks Street Atlas Page 172 B4 Head of Spatial Planning West Wycombe and Sands The Development Control Committee is invited to APPROVE application no. CC/08/02 for the demolition of the existing gym and construction of single storey adult education block at Millbrook Combined School, Mill End Road, High Wycombe. None SUPPORTING INFORMATION 1 The application was received on 28 January 2002 and was sent out for consultation on 30 January 2002. The application has been advertised by site notice and neighbour notification. Proposal 2 The application seeks full planning permission for demolition of the existing gym and store and construct a single storey adult teaching block. The proposed extension would incorporate 4 classrooms, 2 women s rooms, a crèche facility and associated administration accommodation. In addition 28 new car parking spaces are proposed for use by the centre staff and users.
3 Millbrook combined school was constructed as a secondary school with separate accommodations for boys and girls. The accommodation in one half was the mirror image of the other. This has resulted in the combined school now having 2 gyms, 2 halls etc. 4 The proposal is to demolish one of the gym buildings which is considered to be surplus to the requirements of the school and which has significant structural damage. The other gym would remain for use by the school. 5 The proposed new building has been designed in keeping with the existing school complex and is to be single storey with a pitched roof and stock facing bricks to match the existing gymnasium. The building is rectangular in shape with a curved element at the southern end. Site Description 6 The school site is roughly rectangular with the main school buildings to the north west and the hard playground area to the south east. A formal recreation ground is sited to the west of the site which forms the flood plain of the river Wye which borders the school to both the north and south. The Development Plan 7 The relevant planning policy is set out in policy TR5 of the adopted Buckinghamshire Structure Plan. The relevant Local Plan policy is set out in policy RC1 of the adopted Wycombe District Local Plan and policy H14 of the Wycombe District Local Plan to 2011 Deposit Draft. View of the District Council 8 Wycombe District Council has raised no objection to the proposal but has made the following comments: i ii iii The comments of the Environment Agency should be taken into consideration. The overall community needs of the Sands Area and the ability of the site to accommodate other community facilities should be considered. The local community and in particular the local councillors and the Sands residents association should be actively engaged. The school should implement a green travel plan incorporating cycle facilities and pedestrian access. Consultations 9 No response has been received from the Local Member.
10 Highways Development Control have raised no objection subject to the addition of a condition requiring the laying out of car park prior to the occupation of the buildings. 11 Hyder (landscape) No objection subject to replacement planting being carried out to replace the mature tree which is located within the proposed car park area. 12 No letters of representation from neighbouring occupiers have been received. Discussion 13 The main issues for consideration are the impact of the increased pupil numbers at this site, the use of the site by other community groups, the implications of the proposals with regard to highway safety and the situation of the application site adjacent to the designated flood plain. 14 There is an adult education facility currently on the site which is located within the main school complex on the first floor. This could potentially lead to conflict with pupil safety. The proposal is to return this accommodation to the school and for a new purpose built centre to be erected on the site for adult use with a crèche facility for the students attached to it. 15 The closure of the Sands First School and Green Street First School has led to a moderate increase in the number of pupils to be accommodated at this site. However, this was anticipated and a three classroom extension has also been erected at Oakridge school. It is expected that approximately half of the pupils will transfer to Oakridge school. The Use of the Site by Other Community Groups 16 Following the amalgamation of the schools to create Millbrook Combined School, all associated facilities were relocated to the site including the nursery and the adult education facilities. The school has substantial premises which are surplus to requirements and is attracting interest from other groups including Bucks music groups. Each user will be considered on their own merits subject to pupil safety not being compromised. All such uses must fall within use class D1 and must not result in a change of use of the site and must remain ancillary to the use of the site as a school. It is considered advantageous for community uses to be centred on the site of the combined school for the ease of use of the parents of the pupils and to provide a focal community point for the area. Highway Safety and Traffic Movements 17 This school is sited in a highly populated area where most of the pupils registered at the school live in close proximity to it and walk to school. There is currently no evidence of pupils cycling to this school. It is not considered that the amalgamation of the schools on this site has led to significant increases in traffic movements.
18 A nursery unit is being accommodated within the existing accommodation of the school so that all of the facilities associated with Millbrook school are located on the same site. The transfer of the nursery unit did not require planning permission. 19 The children who will be registered at the nursery will be largely from the local area and most will walk to the school. Those who are driven will park outside of the school and walk into the nursery facility. 20 The adult education centre currently exists on this site and operates at the same times as the proposed centre. The applicant states that the expected number of adult students in any day is between 100 and 120. This largely equates to the numbers currently using the site during the daytime. The two women s group rooms are to be used by particular groups of local women who are known to walk to the site. It is anticipated that the students will also use the site in the evening. The maximum number of courses which will be operating at any one time will be 11. 21 The site is to be open from 9 am to 10 pm Monday to Thursday and until 3 pm on Friday with limited daytime access during the weekend. 22 It is expected that three of the on site spaces to be provided will be occupied by Adult Education staff. At the present time the adult education element utilises 8 parking spaces. The proposal is to construct an additional 28 spaces. The crèche is for use by the students only and therefore traffic conflicts at peak times will not result. In the evening all of the spaces on the site are available for student use. 23 I therefore consider that due to the fact that a large proportion of the pupils at the school and the adults using the education centre live very locally and are known to walk to the site it would be inappropriate to request the imposition of a school travel plan for this replacement accommodation. It is not considered that the erection of the proposed extension will result in any significant increase in traffic movements in connection with the uses on the site. Flood Plain 24 The school site is located between Desborough playing fields and the River Wye. The playing fields which are unaffected by this proposal lie within the flood plain with a sluice located on the River Wye at this point but the school buildings are excluded from the flood plain. During times of high water the field is used to take the extra capacity. It is not therefore considered that refusal of the application on this well established educational site could be justified on flood plain grounds. 25 I would therefore recommend that planning permission is granted for the proposed development subject to conditions to be determined by the Head of Spatial Planning.
BACKGROUND PAPERS The Wycombe District Local Plan (Adopted September 1997) Wycombe District Local Plan to 2011 Deposit Draft CONTACT OFFICER: RACHEL TOMPKINS (01296) 38 2819