DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS

BEAUMONT SCHOOL / WINCHES FARM:

IMPROVED SCHOOL FACILITIES AND ACCESS TO BEAUMONT SCHOOL  

We are delighted that after many years of discussions planning permission has been granted for improved school facilities and access to the school. The proposals are of the utmost importance to the future of Beaumont School and will provide numerous benefits to the School and to our near neighbours in the surrounding residential roads.

In summary detail the new proposals will provide:

• A new access for the school off the Hatfield Road;
• New high quality playing fields including an all weather pitch also available for community use and additional games hard play area;
• A new sports hall available for community use;
• Additional teaching accommodation and new reception area for the school;
• Car parking rationalised into one area, to segregate playgrounds from vehicles;
• New pedestrian and cycle links to the school; and
• Housing on the southern part of the existing playing fields, accessed from Hatfield Road, to fund these improvements.

A land swap involving

• the southern part of the existing playing fields, and
• land adjoining the eastern boundary of the school currently owned by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

will facilitate the implementation of these proposals.

The significant benefits of the proposals can be summarised as follows:

Safety and Access

The new access will substantially reduce morning and afternoon peak congestion in Oakwood Drive in particular by removing the problems associated with the existing school entrances off Oakwood Drive which have poor visibility and which are particularly unsuitable for large vehicles such as school coaches, and for emergency access.  The existing northern access to the school will be closed.  Coaches will be able to be parked on site for pupils to board in a safe environment.  The proposals will also include safe pedestrian and cycle routes to the school from Oakwood Drive, Wynches Farm Drive and from the Hatfield Road, encouraging greener and healthier travel to and from school.

Sports Facilities

The new sports pitches will replace the existing playing pitches which are frequently waterlogged and uneven and therefore often cannot be used.  They are also too small bearing in mind that the number of pupils at the school has grown to nearly 1200; the current pitches are sufficient for only 690 pupils based on government guidelines.  In addition, the School has one gymnasium.  The fields and gymnasium are insufficient to deliver the PE curriculum for the large number of pupils on roll.  The new sports hall will address this deficiency and together with improved sports pitches, will provide high quality facilities sufficient to deliver the curriculum and be available for community use during evenings and weekends.  The proposals are supported by Sport England.

Science Facilities

New science facilities are also required in order to deliver the full curriculum.  It is proposed that these will be provided in the existing building.  This will displace art rooms which it is proposed to relocate to a new teaching block and the reception area which will adjoin the proposed sports hall.

Woodland

The proposals include an area of woodland adjacent to the school which will be available to pupils of Beaumont and Oakwood Schools on a supervised basis as a woodland teaching source.

Programme

The process of planning detailed design, legal and implementation processes is now underway. The first work on the ground will involve laying out the new playing fields to the east of the current school site once all the necessary preparations have been made. Once more details about the programme for the work have been established they will be added to this webpage.