This Is The Proposed New School...

UPDATE 14 March 2018
The school itself has been granted planning permission. This is a secondary application in the system which includes the plans for the construction management and the changes to traffic management including the new crossing on Rhos Road.

UPDATE 9 September 2017

After the public consultation in July and feedback from the Community Council, residents, pupils, teachers and governors, the 21st Century Schools team, supported by Flintshire’s CEO, have reviewed the plans and agreed to extra funding if necessary.

This is a preview, more details will be shared soon:

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The feedback covered 4 main points:

1. Traffic concerns
A traffic impact survey is being conducted right now and will be completed and published after the 22nd Sept. The planning process will not move on until that report has been considered.

2. The positioning of the school in relation to neighbouring properties
The team reviewed different options on the site, moving the building to the centre of the plot and swapping the school and football pitch. None of these options were suitable for the needs of the school or practical physically or for the budget.

3.  The design, specifically the flat roof, materials and bright colours and not fitting into the local environment.
The new plans have returned to an earlier design with pitched roof and gable ends – the one closer to neighbours is lower in height. The red colour has been toned down and is only used in the entrance areas. All the materials are natural in appearance.

4. The sustainability of the building
Details were provided of the plans for natural ventilation and solar energy capture and storage.

What happens next?
Flintshire schools team will take the revised plans to Cardiff to present the business case for the school before submitting an application for planning permission. Residents will have the opportunity to comment again once the application is made.

UPDATE 23 August 2017:
This is a link to view the DESIGN AND ACCESS STATEMENT which sets out the design evolution of the school and some of the thinking behind the layout, and materials, as well as describing access to the site: VIEW NOW

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The school design in colour is the final version of the plan. The black and white drawing shows the previous version of the design, as we understand it was seen by the children, teachers and governors - we believe that all were happy with this.

The design was revised because (the quote is from the Planning statement)...

"The building exceeded Welsh Government inclusive costs per m2 following an outline cost assessment. Rather than lose internal area of the building which would be detrimental to its operation, it was the preference of the client to seek savings through further rationalisation of the external envelope."


LOCATION AND OTHER INFORMATION

The school will be on the existing Abbots Lane school site and will replace the current Abbots Lane and Junior school (on Penymynydd Road) These are the key facts from the Flintshire County Council website - are you happy that the designs match up?:

  • New build Primary School to accommodate 315 Full Time Pupils and a 45 FTE place Nursery on the Abbott’s Lane site.
  • Design of the school includes: Classroom for Foundation Phase and Key Stage 2; Hall and Studio facilities; community room; grassed sports field area; multi-use sports pitch; habitat and recreational areas; improved staff and visitor car parking and drop off zone for parents/carers.
  • Increased staff and visitor car parking with dedicated drop off zone for parents/carers.
  • Future proofed design to accommodate classrooms extensions should there an increase of learners in the area.
  • Thoughtful school design to blend into the community.

The full planning application with designs, interior layouts and environmental impact are on the Flintshire website here >>>

There is not currently a transport plan other than the provision for drop off spaces within the car park. The school is currently conducting a survey about it - respond here

The designs are in a pre-application consultation phase before they are submitted to planning. If you have comments please email team@penyfforddcommunity.org and we will pass them onto the schools team and councillors.

This is a video of the exterior: