Sutton Council has at last received a planning application no. C2011/65284/FUL which became valid only in the last few days. As previously advised on our local councillors’ web site and via our FOCUS newsletters the school expansion was recently approved by the Executive Committee of Sutton Council.

The new planning application description says:- “Erection of a two storey extension to provide additional classrooms and associated accommodation, provision of three canopies, a single storey plant room, new boiler flue , extension to play area including new steps and retaining wall together with play area, enlargement of car park to provide a total of 23 spaces with new gates and vehicular access and car park works to include the demolition of existing dwelling within site boundaries.” Residents may wish to view the plans at 24 Denmark Road, Carshalton SM5 2JG during normal office hours or on line via www.sutton.gov.uk quoting the above reference number.

It is likely that this application would be heard by the council’s Development Control Committee as it is a major application and it is in our experience likely to attract many residents’ representations/ letters to the planning department about it.

Both Cllrs. Jill Whitehead and Hamish Pollock sit on this particular committee but not at all meetings of it as it has a rotating panels of members.  There will an opportunity for the planning applicant (we believe  this would be either Sutton Council’s officers or their agents or even the school head), for the representatives of local residents to speak either in favour or against this application, and for the relevant ward councillors to also to have a chance to represent residents’ views.  There are always set time limits for these speeches which are of the order of 4 minutes per above-mentioned group. Residents may recall that local councillor Hamish Pollock had indeed represented residents’ views on the 4 planning applications relating to the redevelopment plans at nos. 2, 2A, 4 and 4A Rotherfield Road in recent years. As usual we expect that we would represent residents’ views when this application is decided upon at committee.    Jill, Alan and Hamish as your three local ward councillors have asked officers if the area of the statutory notification could be extended to cover at least the three roads that surround the school namely Rotherfield Road, Talbot Road and Carshalton Place and as we went to press we await the officers’ response on this request. These roads are where parents mostly seem to park and drop off the children for this school. We hope to have a further update soon…