Alan, Jill and Hamish as the local councillors received a letter a few days ago from the headteacher of Carshalton High School for Girls which we have been allowed today (12th September) to publish:-

Dear Councillor

I am writing in response to the article relating to the proposed sports hall at Carshalton High School for Girls outlined in a recent edition of Focus.

Context

The school has been bidding for funding to improve and upgrade the facilities at the school for many years. In comparison to all other secondary schools in the local area, the accommodation at Carshalton High School for Girls is inadequate with students not having equality of access to specialist facilities as their peers do in other schools. In April this year we heard that a bid we had submitted to the Education Funding Agency on the grounds of condition had been successful and we were granted £2.9million to replace our life-expired mobiles in a new building; which includes new dining facilities, replacing the 1940’s horsa – hut at the edge of the site adjoining houses in Colston Avenue and West Street.

At the same time, for the past 18 months, we have been working with the Education Department of the London Borough of Sutton, along with all other secondary schools in the borough, to discuss expansion of secondary schools to address the extremely serious pupil place planning issues that the borough faces. It was agreed by councillors that Carshalton High School for Girls should expand by one form of entry from September 2015. However, along with the other schools expanding, and the vast majority will be expanded by 2018, even with the investment from the EFA, we have a shortage of space to provide a full curriculum for our students, and one area in particular sports and changing facilities, is particularly poor; we currently are unable to provide a full PE curriculum.

The London Borough of Sutton has therefore agreed to fund a further £2.7million to the school, to enlarge the original footprint of the new building to replace the mobile accommodation, to re-model two current buildings that stand next to each other to provide more classroom space and to build a sports hall with changing rooms.

The Sports Hall

Originally to try to attract funding for the sports hall, the school had been looking to secure grants from sporting organisations including Sport England. In order to do so the plans drawn up needed to be in accordance with the Sport England ‘Aspire’ programme and therefore of a size and standard that would meet the necessary criteria including extensive community use for evenings, weekends and during school holidays.

With the local authority agreement to fund the sports hall the need to satisfy the criteria above is no longer a requirement. The size of the sports hall itself has therefore been reduced to a standard 4 court building with changing rooms. The facilities will be primarily for school use and whilst some lettings may take place it will be in line with the type of letting programme the school has undertaken for many years, which has benefited the local community without causing the type of concerns that the newsletter article outlines.

Specific Concerns Raised

Extra Usage: As outlined above the sports hall will be primarily for school use. The facilities included will limit how it can be used. It is not of the size and scope highlighted in the original plans. The school currently has lettings for sporting activities such as badminton, cheerleading and Zumba. It is envisaged that such activities will continue in the vein of the current provision.

Parking: All members of the community who use the facilities will be required to park in the school car park. Some parking spaces are being created close to the new building but will be accessed from the school site and simply replace others that are being lost elsewhere as the site is re-configured. For example, there are a number of spaces around the current dining room which will be lost when the area at the back of the site is turned back to grass.

Increased Congestion: As there will be limited use of the facilities it is not envisaged that this will create significant extra congestion. Cars will enter and exit the school through the gates on West Street as they currently do and will be parked in the main school car park at the front of the building. There will not be access from Colston Avenue.

Noise: On the previous plans there was significant configured outdoor space to accommodate community use. The new plans do not have such facilities. The new plans simply replace what currently exists in a like-for-like scenario e.g. two netball courts, long-jump pit and grassed area for pitches and athletics. These facilities will be sited on the areas released by the demolition of vacated buildings.

Lettings: In line with all other schools in the area, we seek to ensure that the school is a hub of the community, enabling local residents to access specialised facilities when the school is not used by students. However, the school has total control over the lettings and has for many years taken into account the balance of opening its doors to the community, being able to generate some additional income to plough back into the upkeep of the buildings and ensuring a very positive relationship is developed and maintained with the residents who live locally. The addition of the proposed new facilities will not change that policy or ethos.

Travel Plan:The school has had a travel plan in place for several years and we were delighted this year to receive the Silver Award. There is a commitment to encourage students to walk or cycle to school and we actively discourage parents from parking in such a way that causes issues for the local residents.

In conclusion, we hope this allays any fears that local residents may have and gives an accurate picture of the proposed plans. As a school we aim to do the very best for our students. We feel that the girls have been disadvantaged for many years in terms of accommodation in comparison to their counterparts in other schools, although this has not prevented the school from securing enormous improvements in recent years. We now have the opportunity to re-dress that balance and ensure our students are learning in an environment conducive to the 21st Century. The Focus newsletter sums this up so well with the heading ‘Stronger Economy Fairer Society’; we obviously have a shared vision for young people in this area.

We pride ourselves on having been a part of the local community for years and establishing and maintaining a very positive relationship with local residents. Our recent Golden Anniversary celebrations brought many members of the community through the gates and we want to ensure that positivity is maintained and have taken this into account when formatting the plans for the new building and the sports hall.

The Chair of Governors, the Architect team and I would all be very happy to meet with you to discuss these issues further. Please do not hesitate to contact the school to speak to me or e-mail me on vjones@suttonmail.org.

Yours sincerely

Vivien Jones

Headteacher

Cllr. Hamish Pollock says:  “Carshalton High School for Girls (CHSG) has submitted a planning application to the Council for a new two-storey Sports Hall (C2014/70052), to be built adjacent to the boundary with Carshalton Athletic Football Club (CAFC), close to the path from Colston Avenue to CAFC.  Details can be found at on the Sutton Planning Register at gis.Sutton.gov.uk/FASTWEB/Welcome.asp. 

Please note: If you wish to make comments they should be submitted by 18th September 2014.”  

Cllr. Alan Salter says: “Councillors and residents met with the Head Teacher of CHSG about six months ago, and asked for residents’ concerns to be taken into account in regard to the size and use of the new building – we were advised of plans to use it at evenings and weekends – and in regard to additional traffic and parking due to increased usage of the school facilities. Although we understand the size of the hall has been reduced in size, it is still a substantial structure, and the planning application has not provided for any additional parking at the school for extra visitors.”

Cllr. Jill Whitehead says:  “Residents have commented to us as your local Lib Dem councillors that traffic and parking (on double yellow lines) in Colston Avenue over the summer holidays for sports events at the Girls School were unacceptable, and these were compounded by similar events at CAFC at the same time. Any new planning application would need to provide:- a) a Travel Plan to encourage children to come by foot/bicycle/public transport, and b) deal with the very bad traffic gridlock and associated noise and nuisance experienced by residents over the summer.”  

More in a future FOCUS and watch out for updates on our web site.

Cllr. Hamish Pollock reports: “Planning permission was granted last Wednesday (19th March 2014) when I attended and voted at the Council’s Development Control Committee for the new two storey block at Carshalton High School for Girls. The block will be built close to the boundary with the Carshalton Athletic Football Club. The block would be substantial – about 40 x 24 metres in size, and about 11 metres in height and will house the new school canteen, plus classrooms and dance and drama studios. It will be mostly painted render in appearance.”

He adds: “The existing canteen buildings will be demolished in the south-east corner of the school grounds near the West Street and Colston Avenue junction… The committee agreed with the planning officers’ recommendations that the scheme would not have a detrimental impact on the surrounding area. A resident from Colston Avenue in favour of the development addressed the committee. Councillors present were however concerned over the proposed loss of a group of some existing hornbeam trees near the west boundary, but they were reassured that their replacement by 15 new hornbeam trees about 4 to 4.5 metres high would help to substantially mitigate this loss”.

The following is a list of the stalls expected on Monday, 23rd July 2012 to be set up in the War Memorial Gardens by Carshalton Ponds.

They will be part of the celebration in connection with the Olympic Torch Relay taking place. The torch is expected to pass Carshalton Ponds some time after 2pm on Monday.

One of the largest community events to be staged in the borough this year will take place in the Wrythe area of Carshalton on Saturday July 15. It marks the unveiling of a new memorial to commemorate the local men that sacrificed their lives in The Great War.

Residents in the area of Colston Avenue and Westmead Allotments holders have expressed concern to Hamish, Alan and Jill about maintaining access to facilities from Colston Avenue during the excavation for and construction of Carshalton Athletic Football Club’s (CAFC) “3G” playing pitch.

The access road to CAFC is being renamed Robin’s Way. “Informal” double yellow lines were put in by the club along the length of Robin’s Way on one side only, but Sutton Council was not consulted about this by the CAFC. As the highways authority, Sutton Council must consult local residents and interested parties about a proposed new entrance scheme which meets everyone’s needs.

Allotments holders say that access to their allotments is being blocked and parking access is being denied them by the CAFC, including to the parking space provided by the Council’s Carshalton Local Committee a few years’ ago, and to the allotments shop.

At the last Carshalton Local Committee held in late April 2015, councillors agreed that the Council should bring forward plans for Robin’s Way to the next meeting on 16^th June 2015, and that these should take into account allotments holders’ views as well as those of local residents.

Meanwhile Sutton Council is meeting local allotments representatives to look at possible options going forward, which can be considered at the next meeting of the Carshalton Local Committee.

The next meeting of the Carshalton Local Committee will be held from 7.30pm on Tuesday 16^th June 2015 at the Clockhouse Community Centre, The Mount, Richlands Road, Coulsdon.

Some things we’ve done for you in the Poets’ Estate:-

1) Benhill Rec. We installed new play facilities, planted lavender beds and removed the old skateboard ramp.

2) Westmead Road/Carshalton Grove. We asked the Council to investigate and prevent future floods in this area.

3) Colston Avenue/Coleridge Avenue/Court Drive. We installed new yellow lines to reduce commuter parking.

4) Free Grit. We installed new grit bins in many locations in the Poets’ Estate/Westmead area of the Carshalton Central ward, including at the junction of Sutton Grove/Waterloo Road.

5) Street Trees. We have got planted 81 street trees in Carshalton Central ward many of them in the Poets’ Estate.

6) Mead Crescent. Road was resurfaced.

7) Shirley Avenue. Road and pavements were resurfaced.

8) Westmead Allotments. Better secure fencing installed.

9) Shorts Road/West Street Footpath. We asked the council to clear dog mess and asked police to monitor the area.

10) Wrythe Rec. We installed new play facilities in the rec. We asked that the railings are refurbished and work is underway.

And….We have also kept residents informed and supported residents in the various planning applications affecting our area. Examples are the Carshalton Athletic Football Club’s applications for 3G plastic surface for the football pitch and extended hours of lighting both of which were unanimously refused by Sutton Council’s planning / development control committee.

Sutton Council’s Development Control (or Planning) Committee unanimously threw out Carshalton Athletic Football Club’s two major planning applications last Wednesday (22nd January).

These applications were for (1) increased use of floodlights; (2) the replacement of the turf pitch with a 3G plastic pitch.

Local residents’ representatives and one of your councillors spoke against both of these planning applications at the meeting.

The reasons for refusal included serious concerns over the loss of amenity and damage to the area’s environment, with additional noise and nuisance caused by the floodlights and the anticipated significantly increased use of the ground, as well as a big impact on parking and traffic in local roads near the ground.

There were also considerable concerns expressed by those present about the possible impact of flooding on nearby residential properties, highlighted by the recent bout of very wet weather. We understand that the Football Club will be appealing against the Council’s decision. The appeal would go to the Planning Inspectorate based in Bristol, a Government agency.

We will be making our objections known to the planning inspector in due course. Unfortunately the planning inspector has the legal powers to overturn the Council’s decision.

MORE in a future posting and edition of FOCUS.

Cllr. Alan Salter says: “Carshalton Athletic Football Club has submitted two planning applications for 1) a new “3G” pitch (no. C2013/68433) and 2) for use of flood lighting for training on Monday to Saturdays up to 21.15 hours and on Sundays up to 18.00 hours, except for weekday games and cup matches up to 22.30 and 23.00 hours (no. C2013/68432), thus changing the current planning conditions for hours of use.”

Alan adds: “This will be heard by the Council’s Development Control Committee (DCC), and will include a statutory consultation of local residents by Sutton Council in the vicinity of the club (21 days from 6^th to 27^th December). This follows the proposal to vary the lease the Club holds as a tenant of Sutton Council to enable the Club to apply for funds from the Football Club Foundation for the new 3G pitch.

Cllr. Hamish Pollock says: “If planning permission fails, the club cannot apply for these external funds and the lease variation falls. If planning permission is granted by the Development Control Committee but the funding application to the Football Club Foundation fails, then the lease variation also falls and the use of the pitch will be the same as now, with no new 3G surface.”

Hamish adds: The Council has been advised that should the planning application and grant application succeed, CAFC intends to bring training into the football club grounds and away from Wrythe Recreation Ground. It has also indicated that it intends to provide extra parking in the grounds to reduce parking pressure elsewhere, planting of trees to reduce noise, and reduction in light spillage. A Joint Consultative Committee of residents, councillors and the Football Club has been set up to deal with residents’ concerns, which will meet quarterly.

Plans can be viewed at the Council’s offices at 24 Denmark Road, Carshalton SM5 2JG. The Development Control Committee meeting is likely to be held in the New Year.