20/3/2008

Local News

School extension plans revealed

THE plans for the extension of Elvetham Heath Primary School have finally been submitted to Hart Council.
The proposed extension will provide room for an additional 210 pupils, bringing the school’s capacity up to 640.
The extension to the school in The Key will include six classrooms, a music and drama room, an ICT suite, two shared learning rooms, loos, a plant room and storage space.
Hampshire County Council, which submitted the plans, is also looking to build a junior-sized sports pitch and netball court at school.
The school was built to serve the Elvetham Heath estate and opened in February 2004. It was oversubscribed from the very beginning, with developers and the county council having underestimated how many children would be attending the school.
It has taken several years for the extension plans to be agreed.
Headteacher Stuart Adlam said: “We’re very happy indeed with the proposal and hope it goes ahead.”
Although it was ruled that the school’s current car park is unsuitable for the site, a transport assessment of the plans dismissed the idea of extending it. The county council feared it would encourage more parents to drive their children to school.
Instead, they recommended that a new access should remain open at the school from Turners Way, which benefits those pupils who walk or cycle.
The statement said: “A solution to the car parking problem, both around the existing access and the Morrisons car park as well as the new access from Turners Way, is unlikely to be resolved successfully in the short term. It is important that the school through its school travel plan continues to encourage more sustainable choices thereby reducing the total number of cars dropping off and picking up pupils.”
To view the full application or to comment on it, log on to www.ukplanning.co.uk