1. Governing body presentation
Harpenden Secondary Schools
Governing body presentation
Thank you
Presentation will be given to all Harpenden Secondary School Governing Bodies if invited.
Meeting SJL – this evening
Meeting Roundwood Park – give date
No meeting programmed with St Georges – but offer will be made
KATE

2. St Albans City and District LDF
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
St Albans City and District LDF
Children's Services
Early Intervention
Hertfordshire Property
Context
Children's Services – school place planning
Hertfordshire Property – corporate estate services and town planning advice to protect and deliver County Council service requirements
Children's Services and Hertfordshire Property – long term engagement with a number of local planning authorities in Hertfordshire – to work on appropriate, justified town planning solutions to delivering opportunities for meeting the rising demand for school places. (Expansions of existing schools – temporary, permanent, new schools and how they might be delivered)
St Albans City and District Council– last months discussing the implications of local pressure for primary and secondary school places principally in St Albans and Harpenden but across the district
This presentation explains the background context to that work and the options moving forward
KATE

3. St Albans City and District LDF
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
St Albans City and District LDF
Core Strategy DPD ( )
Site Allocations DPD
Core Strategy:
St Albans City and District are preparing their Core Strategy DPD (a replacement for their 1994 Adopted Local Plan) – the plan period will be from and the Core Strategy will set out levels of growth for key land uses (e.g. housing, education, employment) and how they will be met in broad terms.
Site Allocations:
The Site Allocations DPD will sit alongside the Core Strategy. The District Council have not yet begun preparing this but all the work we have been doing can feed into this document too. The Site Allocations DPD is more detailed than the Core Strategy and will identify specific sites for new development (e.g. new housing, employment and school sites) to meet the levels of growth set out in the Core Strategy.
MATT

4. Harpenden Education Planning Area
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Harpenden Education Planning Area
Total number of year 7 places: 568
2019/2020 predicted demand for year 7 places: 664 – now 707 places
Deficit of c20%
Expansion potential of existing schools
Potential for new school
There is a growing need to provide secondary school places in both the key main settlements of St Albans and Harpenden during the Core Strategy plan period up to 2028.
This slide presents information that was collated at the end of last year and is included in the “Meeting the rising demand for School Places” (2009) document.
Since that document has been completed the demand for places has increased:
To respond to the growing demand HCC have been looking at the town planning potential for expanding existing primary and secondary schools and the potential requirement for new school sites to be provided in the District – which could be fed into the Core Strategy and Site Allocations Document when it is prepared
The town planning purpose is to ensure a planning system that offers opportunity. It is not at this stage about the detail of solutions
KATE

5. Expansion potential of existing schools
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Expansion potential of existing schools
Expansion potential to 8fe based on DfE standards
Preliminary town planning and highway appraisals
In looking at expansion potential we had to make some assumptions about the expansion standards to which we were working
For the expansion of existing schools we established that 8fe would be the maximum preferred capacity limit – so our studies asked the question – are there any significant town planning or highway constraints that would prevent this school expanding to 8fe if planning permission was required for new building?
We also had to apply a standard to which we should be working if expansion were to take place – so our studies worked on site capacity planning in accordance with BB98 – we realise that for some schools who have academy status this capacity planning is not a requirement and so the capacity standards might, in the event not need to be applied so rigidly.
To look at the expansion potential of existing primary and secondary schools we commissioned preliminary town planning and highway appraisals to understand whether there are any constraints that might prevent expansion (if planning permission for new buildings or redeveloping parts of sites were to be required).
Our town planning and highway appraisals looked at the planning policy constraints (e.g. listed buildings, conservation areas) the situation of the site in its surroundings and any potential constraints; and our highways appraisals looked at existing traffic conditions and the capacity of the local highway network to take more education related traffic
We looked at the expansion potential of the three Harpenden Secondary Schools
MATT -

6. Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
St Georges School
St Georges School:
Currently operating at 6fe on a total site area of 11.37ha
Current BB98 site capacity is 6.6fe so in accordance with those particular standards the site is too small to expand on its current site.
Site is situated in a Conservation Area.
Existing access from Sun Lane and Carlton Road.
Highways Appraisal identified several inadequacies in the local highway network which would challenge a significant expansion on the site; footway widths/visibility are a problem on adjacent railway crossing points and the Sun Lane/Carlton Road junction; an on site parent drop off facility could be required affecting trees and the conservation area; and pedestrian crossing points would need improvement – concludes expansion would be problematic unless effective highway improvements could be made.
Physically improvements could be made at a cost but the main problem would be the potential for unacceptable impacts on the Conservation Area (removal of significant trees, impact of changes on the character of the area)
Advantages – central location, existing access could be used, some buildings could be replaced
Disadvantages – potential impacts on Conservation Area and locally listed building on the site
MATT

7. Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Sir John Lawes School
Sir John Lawes School:
Currently operating at 6.4fe on a total site area of 5.63ha
Current BB98 site capacity is 3.1fe so in accordance with those particular standards (accepting that the School is now an Academy) the site is too small to expand on its current site
Site is located in an urban area (not a Conservation Area)
Existing access from Manland Way and Sauncey Avenue
Highways Appraisal concluded that subject to some improved crossing points for pedestrians which could be achieved to improve highway safety and visibility, the highway network could accommodate the moderate expansion of 2fe (taking it up to 5fe)
If the BB98 standards were applied then the site would require expansion onto existing playing fields with additional land for detached playing fields to enable expansion (and the County Council owns land off Roundwood Lane which could provide a detached playing field solution – come back to that in more detail later). Any playing fields lost on site would definitely need to be replaced not for BB98 reasons but to meet Sport England requirements and we know that replacement playing fields at Roundwood Lane would be challenging from an operational viewpoint
Another option might be to seek expansion through redevelopment of the existing site buildings without affecting school playing fields but this option would need to be tested further (residential amenity considerations)
Advantages – central location, existing access
Disadvantages – detached playing fields, limited scope for expansion
MATT

8. Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Roundwood Park School
Roundwood Park School:
Currently operating at 6.5fe on a total site area of 8.02ha adjoining Roundwood Park Primary School
Current BB98 site capacity is 6.3fe so in accordance with those particular standards the site is slightly too small to expand on its current site
The County Council is looking to expand Roundwood JMI School from 1.5fe to 2fe
Site is situated in the Green Belt
Existing access from Roundwood Park serves both the Primary and secondary school
Highways Appraisal concluded that the secondary school could only be expanded to 8fe if the primary school were relocated
If at some point in the future the primary school was relocated, it might then be possible for Roundwood Park to expand its building zone into the area of the primary school buildings (either through refurbishment or redevelopment). Additional playing fields may also be required but the County Council owns land further west which could be used if needed with a footpath connection between the lands
Advantages: Roundwood Park JMI offers an opportunity to expand the secondary school if relocated, the site lies close to HCC land for additional playing fields if required, close to public transport and the Nicky line (for cycle access)
Disadvantages: Green Belt, dependent on relocation of Roundwood Park JMI (costs of doing that),potential costs associated with provision of buildings appropriate to secondary school use at Roundwood JMI.
MATT

9. Secondary School site search process
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Secondary School site search process
Selection criteria
11 sites identified
Site F Land to the north of Lower Luton Road
In summary – none of the existing secondary schools present easy expansion solutions and neither would their expansion deliver all the capacity that would be needed to meet future secondary education needs.
To address the deficit and in the event that expansions might not all be possible or desirable we have undertaken a site search exercise for a new secondary school. This would be an education reservation in the Site Allocations Document (whether that be for a all through school, relocated secondary school, new secondary school) is a matter for further discussion. The current focus is finding a site suitable and deliverable for a 6-8fe school site (based on the BB98 site capacity standards)
To do that we had a series of selection criteria (site size 12-15ha for 6-8fe, whole site solution rather than split sites, roughly square or rectangular in shape, flat or gently sloping, within or adjoining an urban area, avoid flood plains, golf courses, areas of high archaeological importance, sites containing listed buildings)
11 sites identified around Harpenden and only one shortlisted – land to the north of Lower Luton Road
MATT

10. Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Reserve School site F
Considered to be a justified need, that the town planning system should create and maintain the opportunity for in the plan period.
This plan shows how in broad terms the school site would be located and how it would be accessed.
The site area shown is approximately 15ha
The site is in the Green Belt
Land rises from the west to the east
The highway appraisal concluded that access could be achieved from Common Lane; a drop off facility would be required on the site and pedestrian crossings may be required
The building zone shows where school buildings, car parking, floodlit all weather pitch, games courts, informal play areas, car parks and service areas would all be located
The playing fields would extend beyond the building zone to the east and north of the site.
Between the building zone and the playing fields there would need to be a structural landscaping scheme and there would probably be the need to reinforce existing vegetation long Common Lane and along the southern boundary of the site to Lower Luton Road
MATT

11. Harpenden Education Planning Area
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Harpenden Education Planning Area
Primary school places forecast demand
2011/2012 – 2012/13 – 1fe requirement
Expansion potential of existing primary schools
Potential requirement for new Primary school
We have talked about the need for secondary school places in Harpenden, the difficulties of expanding the existing secondary schools and the potential for a new secondary school site on land to the north of Lower Luton Road but secondary school needs sit alongside primary school needs and other community needs in the town, all of which need to be fed into town planning processes and with land a limited resource we are considering all aspects
Similar town planning and highway appraisals have been carried out on primary schools in Harpenden.
Conclusions:
High beeches, Sauncey Wood and Wood End all have limited expansion capacity dependent on provision of detached playing fields and resolution of highway issues
Realistically, the only deliverable expansion is either at the Grove (by 0.5fe) or St Dominics (by 1fe).
So to provide additional capacity in the plan period to 2028 it would be prudent to seek the reservation of a primary school site which could be at County Council rural estate land off Roundwood Lane or as part of the use of Site F – again this is about building in opportunity, not dictating solutions.
KATE

12. Harpenden Colts Football Club requirements Ayres End Lane proposals
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Harpenden Colts Football Club requirements
Ayres End Lane proposals
New Farm feasibility
Community needs:
On top of the secondary school and primary school requirements we know that Harpenden Colts Football Club are also looking for a new football club facilities.
The football club did pursue a scheme at Ayres End Lane (land also owned by the County Council) but this site is not easily accessible and would not be suitable for vehicles travelling to and from the football club.
As a consequence we began looking at whether the Harpenden Colts requirements could be met on land at New Farm alongside the need for an additional reserve primary school site.
PETER

13. Meeting Harpenden Colts requirements
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Potential for future provision if required (playing fields adjoining Roundwood Lane)
Meeting Harpenden Colts requirements
Protecting the short and long term requirements
Planning application options
Reserve School site allocation (Land to the north of Lower Luton Road): site allocations
Education reservation (Land to the south of Roundwood Lane): site allocations
So to summarise the position:
The County Council owns 18.5 hectares (46 acres) of rural estate land at New Farm, south of Roundwood Lane
The Harpenden Colts have a requirement for playing pitches and new football facilities
We should be looking to ensure that any proposals for New Farm do not prejudice any future school expansion potential in Harpenden which may need additional playing field land in the plan period
Therefore in terms of proposals for New Farm the County Council would want to consider a number of possible opportunities in the plan period:
i) The Colts lead on provision of playing fields and football facilities for which schools may want to secure a licence from the Colts to use these facilities
ii) HCC might develop sports provisions at the site with a view primarily to meet educational use but with an ancillary use by the Colts
Of the 2 above proposals, the issue of significant influence for HCC would be whether schools without PFs particularly want to proceed with HCC
For the County Council there is the need to; protect the short and long term interests of any schools wishing to expand; ensure that expansion can take place (to DfE standard) if required; and to assist the Colts if possible
PETER

14. Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
New Farm Masterplan
The New farm feasibility layout shows:
The land reservation for the 2fe primary school (white rectangle south of Roundwood Lane)
The playing pitch requirements for the Colts
PETER

15. Meeting educational need Expansion and new provision Community needs
Harpenden Secondary Schools Governing body presentation
Summary
LDF planning
Meeting educational need
Expansion and new provision
Community needs
Next steps
Summary:
Through the presentation this evening we hope that we have:
explained the current work being undertaken to support the Core Strategy and Site allocations DPD’s being prepared as part of the St Albans Local Development Framework
given an overview of the massive pressures on primary and secondary places and the difficulties in resolving those pressures in Harpenden and how we might secure additional primary and secondary school provision through reserved educations sites at new Farm and Lower Luton Road
Set out the way the town planning system can assist in providing the opportunity to meet school needs in Harpenden
set out what the options might be for all the secondary schools in terms of future expansion capability
And how the Harpenden Colts community needs may be met as part of a masterplan for the New Farm estate.
Next Steps:
Continue the dialogue with St Albans City and District Council to ensure that the longer terms needs are met though the appropriate identification of school site reservations.
Updating and monitoring the rising demand for school places and taking appropriate steps as necessary
Providing this information to you to ensure you are fully aware of our work to date in this area.
To give you the opportunity to consider how you may wish to respond in the future. KATE

16. Governing body presentation
Harpenden Secondary Schools
Governing body presentation