As a new resident to the area, I am looking for any info on the planned building works to be carried out by Our Lady and St Philip Neri school at Fairlawn Park. If you have been to any consultations at the school I would be grateful if you could share any info.
Thanks!
As far as I know, they are planning to demolish what is there and build a new, larger school that will concentrate the two separate halves of the school on that one site (next to the church).
I haven't heard where the temporary school will be whilst the building work in going on though.
mikej wrote:As far as I know, they are planning to demolish what is there and build a new, larger school that will concentrate the two separate halves of the school on that one site (next to the church).
I haven't heard where the temporary school will be whilst the building work in going on though.
The new plans are really only available via Lewisham LEA, but my kids are going to be relocated temporarily to Brent Knoll school for the interim.
Essentially they are going to be combining the two sites (Mayow Rd infants and nursery) and the main school onto one site. Mixed reviews based on the fact that they will most likely lose a fair bit of outside space. However, it will definitely move what is an excellent school into an excellent school with great facilities.
I live on Fairlawn Park, and am very worried about these developments. Given the problems caused by parents double parking at the moment, it was dissappointing at the public planning event to see that no thought had gone into this issue. Doubling the number of children by bringing the infants to the site as well will greatly increase the problems for the school's neighbours.
Any redevelopment, however, means that everything gets reviewed by planning, and they can't just assume they can do what they want. In addition, it requires an archaeological survey; the site is in the Sydenham Road Archaeological Priority Zone, and the presbytery is the site of a 17th century house (demolished in the 1920s by the church), that needs recording.
As this replacement presbytery building is of no architectural value, I would prefer it to be demolished and redeveloped after an archaeological dig. This would allow for a much better, less intensive use of the space, and allow the new buildings to be set back a bit from the Fairlawn Park corner. The parish halls could also be usefully redeveloped for the Club, which would allow the old School on Watlington Drive to be brought back into use as a school annexe, for the infant classes.
A row of trees along the Fairlawn boundary would also be a good way of marking the memory of the many people who died at that spot, killed by the bombs that fell in 1918 and 1940. Incidentally, the 1940 bombing was on one of the busiest nights of the Blitz, so the bombsite was largely unexplored and unrecorded. It is more than likely that unexploded bombs are going to be down there - I gather they have already planned for an ordance expert to be on standby when the diggers go in....
JRW wrote:I live on Fairlawn Park, and am very worried about these developments. Given the problems caused by parents double parking at the moment, it was dissappointing at the public planning event to see that no thought had gone into this issue. Doubling the number of children by bringing the infants to the site as well will greatly increase the problems for the school's neighbours.
Any redevelopment, however, means that everything gets reviewed by planning, and they can't just assume they can do what they want. In addition, it requires an archaeological survey; the site is in the Sydenham Road Archaeological Priority Zone, and the presbytery is the site of a 17th century house (demolished in the 1920s by the church), that needs recording.
As this replacement presbytery building is of no architectural value, I would prefer it to be demolished and redeveloped after an archaeological dig. This would allow for a much better, less intensive use of the space, and allow the new buildings to be set back a bit from the Fairlawn Park corner. The parish halls could also be usefully redeveloped for the Club, which would allow the old School on Watlington Drive to be brought back into use as a school annexe, for the infant classes.
A row of trees along the Fairlawn boundary would also be a good way of marking the memory of the many people who died at that spot, killed by the bombs that fell in 1918 and 1940. Incidentally, the 1940 bombing was on one of the busiest nights of the Blitz, so the bombsite was largely unexplored and unrecorded. It is more than likely that unexploded bombs are going to be down there - I gather they have already planned for an ordance expert to be on standby when the diggers go in....
leenewham wrote:There is not high on the planning portal, so I presume that this is on hold for now.
Nope still going ahead - I believe they are due to break ground at the close of the school for the summer holiday. I am on one of the parish committees and we meet next week so will see if I can get someone to put the plans up.
Have the designs been set yet, Sydenham Syd? At the consultation the materials and final architecture were still up for grabs. I was hoping for something of some merit at the end of the road I live in.
Fingers crossed!
Surely if they are planning on breaking ground next year for the summer holidays, they have to submit the plans very soon!
