PLANS to build five new homes on a private school’s land in the Lake District are set to be turned down as the proposals would ‘harm’ the character of the area.
Members of the development control committee for the Lake District National Park Authority are recommended to refuse plans from Windermere School to build five local occupancy homes on its Elleray Campus off Ambleside Road in a bid to raise funds.
A report written by planning officers for the committee states: “I consider that the development would result in a permanent loss of open space that is important to the landscape and visual amenity of this part of the National Park, and to heritage considerations.
“The development would harm rather than preserve or enhance the character of the Windermere Conservation Area and the English Lake District World Heritage Site, in particular the attributes of Outstanding Universal Value relating to villas and formal landscapes and the extraordinary beauty and harmony.”
Windermere School is a private school catering for pupils from the age of three to 18. The school is spread across two sites with the Elleray campus housing the junior school in a villa set in ‘extensive’ grounds.
Although the plans include some trees being cut down, the proposals state there will be a net gain in the number of trees and shrubs in the area.
A planning statement states: “Like many local businesses, the Covid 19 pandemic and the resulting lockdowns have seriously affected the School’s income potential, ultimately leaving the School reliant on a Covid Business Interruption Loan of £2 million pounds, of which they have already successfully paid back £1.55 million, due in part to the successful sale of the previous planning consent, thus leaving an outstanding balance of £450,000 that is increasing in costs.
“During 2023 the school has restructured their curriculum and staffing levels, to accelerate their return to profitability, but this has ultimately led to reduced spending on their infrastructure, such as the School’s Estate and IT.
“As such, the school is looking to generate some value from this small piece of excess land that will help them to maintain and improve their facilities to a standard that provides the highest possible quality of learning environment for pupils and enables them to compete within the national and international education markets that they attract their students from.”
According to the report prepared for the committee, the proposals have received 10 letters of support which state the school is an ‘important’ local employer and the investment would help the school widen it’s offering.
Members of the development control committee will discuss the planning application on February 7.
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