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PLANS to expand an Earley primary school have been approved by Wokingham Borough Council (WBC)’s planning committee this evening.
Parents of children at Aldryngton Primary School, in Silverdale Road, and nearby residents packed into the council chambers in Shute End to hear the decision of the planning committee, following months of lobbying against the plans.
The plans were approved by seven votes to two, subject to a number of conditions and approval by the Secretary of State.
The school’s chair of governors, Ian Head, told the committee: “As governors we are legally bound to ensure that the health, safety and wellbeing of the pupils at the school we represent are not compromised in any way. And as such we wish to add our strong concerns in respect of traffic, parking and safety in the area around Aldryngton.
“Irrespective of the expansion issue, work should be initiated by the Council to make the area safer, particularly following the recent serious accident that involved two of Aldryngton’s pupils.”
Parents and local resident Michael Gordon said: “The major concerns for residents are increased traffic, pedestrian safety, the overbearing two-storey design and raised noise levels from the 30% increase in pupils.
“Residents have also highlighted traffic as a huge concern. They state blocked pavements, driving on pavements and chaos in front of Silverdale Parade as some of the major issues and we feel the situation will only worsen should the planning application be granted, and add to an already unacceptable level of risk for our children and our community.”
Parent Hannah Selman argued: “As an Aldryngton parent I am deeply concerned about a number of discrepancies in the Planning Officer’s Committee Report.
“The loss of the pool contravenes clause 70 of the NPPF which calls on planning decisions to guard against the unnecessary loss of valued facilities and is in direct opposition to the Planning Officer’s statement that: the alterations would not result in any harm to the usage of the site.”
Ian Head added: “It is therefore vital that the planning committee do not overlook the unique factors in play in respect to this application. There is no comparable site in Wokingham and to approve this application is to accept an increased risk to site users, something that Earley Town Council, Aldryngton School and the local community are not prepared to accept and we therefore ask you to reject this ill-conceived application in its entirety.”
Planning officer Pooja Kumar said the need for school places was not a planning issue, but weight would be given in special circumstances.
Speaking with regards to concerns that the Multi-Use Games Area would not be big enough, she replied: “We must remember that these are primary school children, not professional athletes, so the size is more than sufficient.”
Parent Kathryn Mitchell, who was speaking in favour of the expansion said: “I was stunned when my child was refused a place at the school, despite living 0.327 miles away.
“My son was devastated to be told that he couldn’t go on play dates with his friends as they all live a nine-mile round trip away from where we live, or that he couldn’t scooter to school. The reality is that I have to drive him to school despite there being six other primary schools within walking distance of our home.”
Maiden Erlegh ward councillor, Cllr David Chopping, who spoke also spoke in favour of the expansion said: “I think it is unreasonable to expect that 105 additional children equates to 105 additional movements during the school-run.
“Aldryngton is a very good school and therefore attractive to families who want to move to the area. Many of the additional children will come from local families who will be able to walk to school.
“As the families with older children grow up and move on, younger families move in and we need to plan ahead for those children rather than rushing through a plan after they have arrived.”
Hurst Councillor Wayne Smith said: “I have no problem with the building, I think it is necessary to provide for extra children, but the traffic needs to be addressed.
“It can be described as chaos as best. We went on a site visit on Friday morning and it was really not good. I think that the highway and travel plan needs to be addressed before this can go through.”
Conditions were added to the application that a maximum of 420 pupils be allowed at the school; delivery times for the new Tesco store be restricted; and for a travel plan to be approved before commencement of the expansion.
Speaking after the decision was made, Ian Head said: “It’s a stich-up, they got what they wanted regardless of the fact that they were missing a legal document, the travel plan, which is a legal requirement.”
The entire expansion is due to be considered by the council executive on March 15.
