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deargdoom57 Residents and local businesses in Surbiton can have their say about a proposal to build a brand new primary school to serve their local community.
An eight week consultation about the proposal for a new school will run from Monday 15 March – Monday 10 May 2010 and will provide the opportunity for all to comment on the principle of building a brand new school in this location to help meet the growing demand for school places in Surbiton.
A consultation document about the proposal was issued on Monday 15 March.
For more information phone 0208 547 5234
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Kingston Council 
Comments
How about a Tower with Tesco on ground floor and mezz,they can then fund all the school and poly and road rebuild needed.
SURBITON HOSPITAL SITE ! the LAST remaining HUGE piece of land available for redevelopment for the people of SURBITON ! ( THAT'S YOU ) Should the Oakhill Doctor's Surgery be leased or sold for more housing ( at least 30% of the site ) or should this prime piece of land come back to the good people of SURBITON for a COM...MUNITY CENTRE ? We have no YOUTH CLUB ! but the birth rate is growing ! We do not have adequate facilities for the elderly ! We do not have a central community space, such as Hook Community Centre. The Polyclinic will hopefully be a great asset to the Royal Borough of Kingston , The new School is not open to negotiation ( It'S NEEDED) more housing ? I believe the good residents of SURBITON paid for the land at the Surbiton Hospital Site (including Oakhill Surgery Site ) after WW1 ? Can we truly have a say in how this site is now developed ? If the Oakhill Surgery is to be embraced into the Polyclinic site ! I would wish the people of Surbiton a FANTASTIC COMMUNITY CENTRE to the benefit of ALL. Please NO MORE FLATS. And YES I am naive, because I know that the sale or lease of the Oakhill Surgery Site will pay towards the building of the Polyclinic & school.
To All Local Parents, especially of pre-school children:
Please be aware that consultation on the proposed new primary school ends this Monday, 10th May.
There is still time to submit your comments at http://www.kingston.gov.uk/browse/education/schools/school_expansion.htm
Personally, I strongly support building on the unneeded half of the hospital site, for the following reasons. Feel free to copy and paste any you agree with in your submission.
1. Funding: Hard fought emergency funding has already been obtained from Central Govt.
2. Planning: a planning agreement has already been drawn up with the Kingston NHS for the joint development of a polyclinic and primary/nursery school.
3. Size: it's the only site available that meets Govt minimum size recommendations.
4. Location: the site is closest to the area that has historically suffered from unmet demand, ie north Berrylands, Cranes Park / Burney Avenue.
The best way to minimise congestion is to locate school places close to where they are needed, maximising the numbers walking to school.
The hospital site will be very popular with working parents commuting from Surbiton Station. Instead of a triangular home-to-school-to-station commute, parents will be able to do the drop-offs as they go straight to the station.
5. Delivery Date: it is the only permanent solution deliverable by 2012.
6. Future Needs: The hospital site provides capacity for the Surbiton town area, as well as Berrylands. The town centre is likely to see continued growth in new housing. Indeed, there are plans to build more than 200 apartments on the station carpark site, almost next door to the proposed new school site.
Drawbacks:
I don't think that the council's plans go far enough to fully solve Surbiton's shortfall in primary school places.
At last year's consultation meeting, RBK said that they needed 150 extra places annually in Surbiton. The new school will provide only 60 of these, with a further 30 at Grand Avenue and 15 at St Matthews giving a grand total of 115, ie 35 short of the 150 required.
RBK presumably seek to address this shortfall by providing an additional 30 permanent places at King Athelstan in central Kingston, but sureley these could be provided closer to Surbiton at either St Matthews or Christ Church.
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Some of you may be aware that the Conservative shadow education spokesman, Councillor Dennis Doe, has recently said that he will scrap "silly ideas" for building a new school on the Surbiton Hospital site
For details see http://www.kingstonguardian.co.uk/news/5062444.Surbiton_primary_school_c...
I think he is completely misguided and out of touch with local parents:
1. there is no funding for his hair brained alternative scheme - extra funding is needed to rebuild the resource centre and/or old peoples home.
2. it would add a minimum of three years, ie a delivery date of 2015 versus 2012 for the hospital site option.
3. the King Charles site does not meet minimum size recommendations for new schools.
4. the area around the King Charles site is already well served by existing schools.
I think it is vital that Surbiton parents actively support the best solution, ie the hospital site. There is a danger that Conservative Councillor Doe might get his way, and inflict at least three extra years of bulge classes before his third rate solution is delivered.
If you agree, make your feelings known in your submission at http://www.kingston.gov.uk/browse/education/schools/school_expansion.htm
regards
Paul Sloan
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