Agenda Item No.

Committee: / Regulatory
Planning Committee
Date: / 22 September 2008
Report by: / Director of Transport and Environment
Proposal: / Replacement of existing Bexhill High School on land at Gunters Lane, Bexhill comprising new two/three storey main building, external learning areas, floodlit all-weather pitch and multi-use games area, landscaping including new fencing, ecodome, amphitheatre, cycle and vehicle parking including alteration to existing provision, pedestrian access, service access, refuse/recycling storage and ancillary works.
Site Address: / Bexhill High School, Gunters Lane, Bexhill.
Applicant: / Director of Children's Services
Application No. / RR/2709/CC
Key Issues: / 1.  Need
2.  Alternative Site Selection
3.  Siting and Design
4.  Landscape impact
5.  Access and Highways
6.  Site illumination
7.  Residential Amenity-noise and odour
8.  Sport and recreation provision
9.  Sustainability
10. Security
11. Ecology
12. Archaeology
13. Construction and Waste Minimisation

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

1. To grant planning permission subject to the applicant meeting the obligations set out in paragraph 8.1 and the conditions as set out in paragraph 8.2

CONSIDERATION BY DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORT AND ENVIRONMENT

1. The Site and Surroundings

1.1 Bexhill High School, Year 7 building is situated on land to the south west of the junction of Gunters Lane with Turkey Road in the predominantly residential area of Glenleigh Park towards the north of Bexhill. Access to the school is from Gunters Lane via a separate ‘in’ and ‘out’ road arrangement. The school buildings are adjacent to Gunters Lane with playing fields to the south-west. To the south of the Year 7 building are playing fields owned by Bexhill College. The site falls gently by 6 metres to the north over a gradient of approximately 1:40. The site contains a significant number of mature, deciduous trees and hedgerows along its boundaries and crossing the site. This has the effect of dividing the campus into smaller parcels of land enclosing and separating the various playing fields.

1.2 There are a mix of single and two storey residential properties to the south in Glenleigh Park Road, Kingswood Avenue and Uplands Close with more housing to the west and north which adjoins the playing fields. There is denser, more recent housing to the east, opposite the school, developed on former Bexhill College school playing fields. A public footpath (No.88) runs from the south between 19 Kingswood Avenue and 64 Glenleigh Park Road dissecting the school campus and emerging onto Turkey Road to the north.

1.3 The Year 7 building is approximately 10 years old and, as the planning history in section 3 indicates, was built as the first phase of a relocation of the High School from its current site to the south off Down Road, immediately north of the main A259 next to Little Common. The Downs Road campus dates from the 1950’s.

2. The Proposal

2.1 The proposal is to develop a new Bexhill High at the Gunters Lane site within a single building. The existing Year 7 building is to remain but is not planned to be used by the High School. The new school is programmed to open in September 2010 and to reach its capacity of 1650 students 5 years later in 2015. The new school includes a specialist unit for up to 22 autistic children. Currently, there are 212 staff which is expected to increase to 227 (188 full time equivalent) of which 100 would be teaching staff. Taken together with the remaining Year 7 building the notional pupil capacity of the whole site would approach 2000 although 180 from the new school would attend a separate Skills Centre.

2.2 This separate Skills Centre is intended to be developed in the Down Road area, and would provide facilities for basic vocational education such as; engineering, hairdressing or catering, for students aged 13 - 16 who would attend for a day at a time. The details of the proposal are still being developed and will be the subject of a separate planning application yet to be submitted.

2.3 Vehicular access to the proposed site will remain, as at present, off Gunters Lane, but remodelled. The existing arrangements comprise separate, ‘in’ and ‘out’. The ‘in’ would become two way for the new school and the existing car parking to the south of the Year 7 building is to be extended westwards. The number of spaces would increase from 38 to 111 (including 9 dedicated spaces for drivers with disabilities and 2 for visitors). Those existing parking spaces ‘lost’ as a result of the new access arrangements are indicated to be re-provided in front of the Year 7 building. The enlarged vehicle parking area would also include a drop-off area for the specialist unit. The existing un-segregated pedestrian/cycle way on the west side of Gunters Lane between the junction with Turkey Road and the entrance is to remain and be extended into the site leading to the new school entrance. Cycle parking will comprise of covered, secure, facilities initially for 250 cycles with provision for a further 80.

2.4 The school building itself is proposed to be erected on playing fields to the south west of the Year 7 building. It would comprise 11353 m² gross internal floor space primarily arranged over two floors with a third storey, containing recital/music rooms at the north end. Below that, on the first floor, would be art studios and a 4 court sports hall and on the ground floor at the north end, the main entrance, administration, a 300 seat theatre/assembly room, gym/dance/drama space and sports changing rooms. The main bulk of the proposed school on ground and first floors would be learning ‘pods’ and Science & Technology zone, biomass boiler and flue as well as kitchens at the southern end of the building nearest to immediate residents. The whole building is arranged around a full height multi-functional ‘heart space’ providing circulation, informal study and recreation/relaxation.

2.5 There are no proposed classrooms in the conventional sense. The school will operate a ‘competency based curriculum utilising project based learning’ with students spending 80% of their time in a learning ‘pod’ with the remainder spent in the specialist areas at the north and south ends of the building. Each ‘pod’ is designed to accommodate up to 90 students and 5 or 6 teachers.

2.6 In accordance with the Government Extended School and the Every Child Matters Initiatives the school day would divide into 3 sessions; 0830 – 1130, 1130 – 1430 and 1430 – 1730 with a breakfast club from 0730 and extra curricular activities during and after the final session. The middle session would incorporate a rolling 35 minute lunch break.

2.7 The building itself would comprise main elevations clad in proprietary composite panelling selected for its thermal efficiency, durability and ease of construction. The ‘pods’ would be mainly glazed (with solar control glass), under curved standing seam metal roofing, ‘punctured’ by solar hot water collectors. The ‘heart space’ would be covered by an artificial lightweight, translucent plastic fabric, allowing high levels of natural light through. The flat roof of the 3 storey northern element would be clad with a photovoltaic membrane which converts light into electricity.

2.8 The building would be constructed on levelled ground by cutting in to the existing ground levels at the (higher) southern part of the site near to houses in Glenleigh Park Road by approximately 1 metre and filling i.e. raising ground levels, at the northern end by 1 metre. The building would be 8 metres high to the deep overhanging eaves at the southern end rising to a maximum of 16.5 metres above the ‘heart space’, then falling to 13 metres at the northernmost, 3 storey element. At its closest the building would be 14 metres from the boundary of its nearest residential neighbour at 3 Uplands Close to the south-east. The next closest residential boundary, to the building, is 18 metres distance from the boundary with 64 Glenleigh Park Road to the south.

2.9 Outside each ‘pod’ outdoor learning areas are proposed. There is an amphitheatre proposed adjacent to the building entrance. A service road leads off the extended car park to a service area between the kitchens at the southern end of the building and the boundary with houses in Glenleigh Park Road. In addition a Biodome is proposed in this area. There is a grounds maintenance access between 60 and 62 Glenleigh Park Road, which is to be retained for emergencies as well as maintenance access for Southern Water flood alleviation plant, currently under construction in this part of the site.

2.10 To the west of the new school a (5 metres high) fenced all weather pitch (AWP) is proposed, measuring 102 m. x 62.5 m. This would be floodlit by 4 no. 15 metre high columns to each side. There would be a Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) measuring 33 m. x 18 m. at the northern end of the AWP, which would also be floodlit. The AWP would be suitable for football and hockey and the MUGA for tennis, netball and basketball. The intention is that these facilities and the indoor sports hall would be primarily for the school but, in the spirit of Extended Schools, would also be available for use by the community. Proposed hours are 0800 – 2200 Monday to Friday; 0900 – 2200 Saturday and 1000 – 1700 Sunday, Bank and Public Holidays.

2.11 The area for the School, AWP and MUGA is currently laid out, depending on time of year, as 3 football pitches, a running track and cricket square. 2 pitches would be lost with the running track, cricket square and one football pitch re-provided on the adjoining Bexhill College sport fields as part of their Joint Use Agreement.

2.12 The school buildings and the public footpath, but not the car park, are proposed to be fenced with 1.8 metres high Weldmesh type fencing as are the south, north and west boundaries. The main impact of this will be to split the site to either side of the public footpath. Gates will be included to allow access across the footpath and, in the case of the northernmost gate, where the footpath runs between houses from Turkey Road, this will be operated as a pedestrian access to the school. The southernmost gate, proposed where the footpath emerges onto the school playing fields from Glenleigh Park will not be operated in this way. It will be controlled for maintenance and school sports access to playing fields only in order to deter school related parking, drop off and pick up from this area.

2.13 A Tree Survey accompanying the application recognises the contribution the many mature trees within the site make to the character of the area recommending the majority be retained. One tree will be felled as a direct result of the proposal although the Survey recommends selective felling of other relatively poor specimens in order to help the longer term future of better specimens. In addition areas have been identified for new planting to fill gaps on boundaries or to ensure the longer term future of groups containing good specimens, but which may be approaching the end of their lives.

3. Site History

3.1 RR/1609/CC – 1995 – Granted. First phase of proposed replacement school for the existing Bexhill High School at Down Road. (to accommodate approximately 330 pupils at age 11 (Year 7)).

3.2 RR/2062/CC – 2001 – Granted. New indoor sports facility together with all-weather courts and floodlighting on playing fields south-west of Year 7 building.

3.3 RR/2535/CC – 2007 – Granted. New indoor sports facility together with floodlit all weather courts (Renewal of planning application RR/2062/CC).

4. Consultations and Representations

4.1 Rother District Council; Rother District Council raise no objection subject to:

1. Satisfactory assessment of floodlighting proposal on adjoining residential properties

2. Imposition of appropriate conditions to cover matters raised by the Council’s Environmental Health Officer on noise and odour control in relation to properties in Glenleigh Park Road and Uplands Close.

3. The highway proposals and Travel Plan set out in the application be secured by appropriate conditions/agreements

4. Appropriate measures and Management Plan being put in place to secure community use and consideration of interrelationship with other sporting/recreational facilities in the town and the improvement of existing playing pitches in consultation with Rother District Council and Sport England.

4.2 Highway Authority; The Highway Authority does not wish to restrict grant of consent subject to implementation of off-site highway works and a traffic count before and after the occupation of the building, and conditions in respect of:

·  Details of access off Gunters Lane

·  Wheel washing

·  Details of construction access

·  Provision of vehicle turning areas

·  Provision of parking spaces indicated

·  Provision of safe and secure cycle parking

·  Provision of displaced Year 7 parking

·  Improvement of visibility splays at junction of Gunters Lane / Turkey Road

·  Restrictions on times of delivery and refuse type vehicles to avoid 0800 - 0900 and 1500 – 1600.

4.3 Natural England; note that the survey report accompanying the application found evidence of a good population of slow worms and common lizards at the Down Road site. Recommend a condition to ensure implementation of full mitigation prior to commencement of development. Also note King Offa Primary (near to main Bexhill High at Down Road) was not included in Bat survey as it is not affected by the proposals. If this were to change the building must be surveyed as there is a high likelihood of a bat roost being present. Note that survey did not confirm presence of roost at Down Road site but support survey recommendation that a final check is made before any trees are felled. It is recommend that lighting is low level and directional to avoid impact on foraging bats.