WELCOME Durston House School is a successful school in the heart of Ealing. With 90 per cent of our pupils living in the borough, we have a strong connection to the local area. We are proposing to consolidate our existing school buildings on Castlebar Road and Longfield Road into a new, purpose-built school on our land at Carlton Road. Once the new school is up and running, the existing school buildings will be converted back into homes. In October, we presented our emerging proposals to the local community and asked for feedback on our draft plans. Over the last few weeks, we have considered all feedback given to us and sought to ensure relevant suggestions and concerns are addressed in our forthcoming planning application. We have also developed more information on our plans for the existing school buildings. Please take time to view our latest plans, speak to the development team and ask any questions you may have. CASTLEBAR FIELD ST STEPHEN S NEW SCHOOL SITE AND CONSULTATION VENUE ST LEONARD S RD ST LEONARD S RD A4020 CARLTON RD CARLTON GDNS ROAD WALK LONGFIELD G O R D O N R O A D CRAVEN RD B455 AMHERST ROAD CRAVEN RD PINEWOOD GROVE C CHARLBURY GROVE A S T L E B Ealing Council UXBRIDGE ROAD A R BLAKESLEY AV LONGFIELD AV MATTOCK LANE LONGFIELD RD Town Hall EATON RISE PRE-PREP MIDDLE AND UPPER SCHOOLS R O A D JUNIOR SCHOOL BOND ST Parish Church MOUNT PARK ROAD Haven Green Church SPRING BRIDGE RD NEW BROADWAY B455 HIGH ST HAVEN GREEN HAVEN GREEN Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre THE BROADWAY RD WOODVILLE THE BROADWAY MADELEY EALING BROADWAY WOODVILLE GDNS HAVEN LANE A4020 ROAD FLORENCE RD HAMILTON RD THE MALL Castlebar Field is wholly owned by Durston House and is used by pupils for sport and recreation throughout the week. There is no public use of the space. Currently, we use Castlebar Field for between 5 and 7 hours a day starting at 8.45am and finishing at 4.30pm. To get to and from Castlebar Field, pupils are escorted on foot by school staff from our existing buildings on Castlebar Road and Longfield Road. This is both inefficient for the school and results in regular disruption to the flow of traffic on Castlebar Road and Carlton Road. Consolidating the school onto a single site will address both of these issues. N 400 metres Ordnance Survey data Crown copyright and database right 2014
OUR PUBLIC CONSULTATION In October, we presented our emerging proposals to the local community and asked for feedback on our draft plans. We were delighted to welcome around 200 parents, pupils, neighbours and local groups to the drop-in events, and very much welcome the constructive comments and input we received. We were pleased to hear that many people are supportive of our proposals to consolidate the existing school buildings on to a new site. However, we appreciate that many of our neighbours have concerns and our focus is on ensuring these are addressed in our planning application. An overview of the feedback we received is set out below. POSITIVE FEEDBACK KEY ISSUES RAISED Design support for the proposed design of the new school from both an aesthetic and practical perspective Reduced pupil trips support for consolidating the school on to one site, which will eliminate the number of trips taken by pupils between existing buildings Landscaping support for retaining existing trees and adding new trees and planting where possible Community use of facilities support for offering state-of-the-art facilities for community use outside normal school hours Housing support for converting the existing school buildings back into homes Traffic and parking concern at increased congestion and traffic on Carlton Road, especially during peak drop-off and pick-up times and when facilities are used by the community Relationship with neighbouring properties concern that the new school building would block daylight and sunlight to neighbouring properties Green spaces opposition to development on green space that is designated community open space Environmental impact concern that the development will have an adverse impact on the local environment and wildlife Community use of facilities concern at the facilities being used outside school times by the local community due to issues of noise, traffic and pollution caused by more people visiting the school Photo of Castlebar Field
OUR LATEST PLANS Indicative view from main access Departments We are committed to designing a high-quality and sustainable school that stitches into the surrounding area and is sensitive to our neighbours. We are proposing two linked school buildings focused on the southern part of the site, with an arrival courtyard and secure play area to the front, and outdoor recreation and play to the rear. Illustrative masterplan ground floor South elevation facing tree belt on Carlton Road (trees not shown) East elevation The existing access from Carlton Road will be retained and a new pedestrian access will be created along the frontage. The main block facing Carlton Road incorporates most classrooms and administrative facilities. The assembly block extends further into the site and incorporates specialist classrooms as well as a main hall, dining hall, kitchen and changing facilities. The building heights are consistent with neighbouring properties and lower than Pinewood Grove. The main block is mostly three storeys, reducing to one storey for the Reception Year building on the western part of the site. The assembly block is planned over two floors, which equates to around two and half storeys.
OUR LATEST PLANS Section from Amherst Road to Carlton Road Indicative view from play area Existing footprint and proposed footprint THE KEY PRINCIPLES OF OUR DESIGN REMAIN UNCHANGED: Ensuring the security of our pupils and identifying the most suitable access points for visitors Incorporating energy efficiency and renewable energy measures into the design Positioning new buildings to ensure an acceptable relationship to our neighbours Retaining existing trees wherever possible Facilitating an appropriate level of community use of the new indoor facilities Section through main building to neighbouring properties
LANDSCAPING Indicative view from Carlton Road We are committed to retaining as many trees as possible, and our landscaping proposals incorporate new trees and planting to enhance screening for surrounding properties. We will work with our immediate neighbours at the detailed design stage to discuss the landscape treatment along their boundary. We are proposing fencing along the site frontage to Carlton Road and around the perimeter of the rest of the site. We are proposing to remove the existing floodlights and replace them with a form of lighting that is sufficient for outdoor use by pupils, but not formal sporting use. A specific scheme for this is being considered. We are undertaking a Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (LVIA) to examine how the proposals fit into the site and how they will be seen by our neighbours. LVIA is a very detailed and prescriptive process. It is being undertaken by a specialist consultant in accordance with the relevant requirements. The completed LVIA will be submitted with our planning application. It will be available for detailed scrutiny alongside other technical documents, including: daylight and sunlight assessment arboricultural survey flood risk assessment archaeological assessment Illustrative landscape plan Indicative section to Carlton Road Indicative section to Pinewood Grove
TRANSPORT Potential positioning of coach bay and zig-zags on Carlton Road We understand that transport is a key area of concern for our neighbours. As a local school, we are aware of the importance of this issue. We will continue to be proactive in managing the arrival and departure of pupils at the new school, as we do across our existing school sites. Our objective is to minimise trips by car and avoid disruption on surrounding roads, and we are building up our Travel Plan to help achieve this. MINIMISING CAR USE Many of our pupils and staff are local and currently walk or cycle to school, and we expect this to be the case at our new site. For pupils who are unable to walk or cycle, we are looking to extend the school minibus service as an alternative to the car. We will promote car sharing and engage with our parents and staff to maximise this. For some, driving to school is the only option and we are committed to minimising the disruption this causes for a limited time at the start and end of the school day. MINIMISING DISRUPTION We will issue regular communications to parents encouraging them to drop off and pick up their children away from the immediate vicinity of the school. In addition, we are proposing two measures that will reduce bottlenecks and provide more space for cars to pass on Carlton Road. If our plans are approved, zig-zag markings will be introduced on Carlton Road outside the school entrance to stop parking and ensure the safety of our pupils. This is a standard approach outside schools. We are proposing to provide a new coach drop-off and pick-up bay on Carlton Road, which will be used during the day to take pupils to our playing fields at Swyncombe Avenue. The proposed coach bay is being considered by Ealing Council and will be subject to a separate application at a later date. Photo of Castlebar Field from Carlton Road
NEW HOMES Once the new school is up and running, the existing school buildings on Castlebar Road and Longfield Road will be sold for conversion back into homes. We are not proposing to extend the buildings beyond their current footprint and height. MAIN SCHOOL (Castlebar Road) 8 flats over four floors: 7 x 1-bed 1 x 2-bed 3 townhouses over two floors: 2 x 2-bed 1 x 3-bed Existing building Proposed ground floor plan PRE-PREP (Castlebar Road) 5 flats in total over three floors: 2 x 1-bed 2 x 2-bed 1 x 3-bed Existing building Proposed ground floor plan JUNIOR SCHOOL (Longfield Road) 5 flats over three floors: 4 x 1-bed 1 x 2-bed Existing building Proposed ground floor plan NEXT STEPS We will be submitting our planning application to the London Borough of Ealing in the coming weeks. The council will then undertake its own consultation and assess the full pack of planning application information and materials. The council is likely to take a decision on the application in spring 2019. We will update our consultation website when the planning application has been submitted, and provide a link to the application on the council s website. CONTACT US W: T: 020 7323 3544 E: info@durstonhousenewschool.org A: Durston House School Consultation c/o 7 Bayley Street London WC1B 3HB
Indicative view from the south-west with the proposed new school shown in white (note: see the CGIs for actual colour), Carlton Road on the right, Amherst Road on the left and Pinewood Grove to the rear
Indicative view from the west with the proposed new school shown in white (note: see the CGIs for actual colour), Carlton Road on the right, Amherst Road in the foreground / on the left, and Pinewood Grove in the background
Indicative view from the east with the proposed new school shown in white (note: see the CGIs for actual colour), Carlton Road on the left, Pinewood Grove in the foreground, and Amherst Road in the background / on the right