Planning for Schools
Why produce a Planning for Schools DPD (Development Plan Document)?
The council has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient school places. The council is able to do this by extending existing schools but in the case of new schools the national policy assumptions is that these are academies or free schools which are state schools funded directly by central government rather than the council. It is widely recognised that there is a need to deliver additional primary and secondary school places in the borough to accommodate an increase in demand, having regard to the rising birth rate and school roll projections. Up to a further additional 3.5 primary forms of entry (FE) need to be provided by September 2016 and 19 secondary FE by September 2019.
Objectives of the Planning for Schools DPD
- To ensure the amount of primary and secondary school places provided meets the needs of the borough
- To provide safe, convenient and accessible locations for primary and secondary schools
- To promote good design and space standards for schools
A Planning for Schools DPD provides policy direction to establish if and where this need could potentially be met. A DPD is a formally recognised planning document which will form part of the council’s suite of documents known as the Local Plan. This particular DPD clearly establishes the council’s approach to providing primary and secondary school places and will help to identify sites which may be suitable for providing them, whether by extension to existing schools or on new sites.
When will the Planning for Schools DPD be adopted?
The Inspector's report was received on March 2nd 2016 and was published on the same day. The report concluded that the Planning for Schools DPD provides an appropriate basis to meet the need for additional school places in the borough to 2021, providing a number of modifications were made to the plan. These modifications were proposed by council officers and were necessary to enable the plan to be adopted.
Following consideration by Full Council on 10 May 2016 the Planning for Schools DPD was formally adopted.