Next week councillors on the WBC Planning Applications Committee will be asked to support a council recommendation to grant Smart Pre-schools of Wimbledon permission to open a private nursery in these council owned premises in the heart of Wandsworth Common.
The Alternative is....
A Community Asset for all Wandsworth Primary Schools.
To date there have been 70 objections filed against the current planning application, as well as opposition from the Wandsworth Society and the Wandsworth Common Management Advisory Committee. Unfortunately WBC planners appear content to ignore these objections in the absence of an alternative proposal. However there is one which, to date, WBC have refused to engage with, despite repeated requests and support from the long established Head Teacher of a very eminent junior school here in NV.
The building in question, Neal's Lodge and Cottage, adjacent to the Skylark cafe on Wandsworth Common is subject to usage restrictions governed by the 1967 "Long Act". These premises can be used only for educational and recreational purposes and should aim to serve the Common. The current application for a private nursery appears to contravene a number of council planning policies, principally:
-traffic and congestion, parking and safety
-noise and disturbance (think 62 under fives while you are trying to do your yoga stretch in the dog free zone or while you are nursing a coffee at the cafe or dropping off your grandfather at the bowling green!)
-impact on local environment and suitability of use.
The buildings themselves have been allowed to fall into disrepair and require a full refurbishment. For a private enterprise to undertake this would therefore be convenient, as would the commercial gain to be had by the rent. It is a building however on Metropolitan Open Land and it is our belief that the council should seek to use them for the benefit of the wider community and all users of Wandsworth Common and not just a comparatively small number of families who would possibly (given its slightly awkward location) take advantage of the day nursery offering. In particular it is difficult to see how a private enterprise will benefit the Common.
The alternative proposal, codenamed Project Phoenix, is for a potentially ground breaking community initiative designed primarily to support all of the Wandsworth LEA 56 primary schools. Phoenix proposes the transformation of Neal’s Lodge and Cottage on Wandsworth Common into a centre for Non-Formal Learning (NFL), all in the name of 'character education' - Nicky Morgan's buzzword 'du jour'. Otherwise referred to as ‘learning by doing’, NFL is proven to have a positive effect in building vital character attributes and without providing schools with NFL opportunities outside of the classroom that support the curriculum, young people are at risk of not developing key skills important for future success. Critically too, Phoenix aspires to be a community project that works in harmony with the surrounding spaces serving the Common where transport, vehicle and human traffic, staffing levels, hours of business, noise levels and care of the grounds and environment are all key considerations. A full synopsis of Phoenix complete with rationale, need and vision can be found in the attachment.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
If you agree also that these buildings on common land should be utilised as a true community asset, that will in turn aim to service Wandsworth Common, and not as a private nursery, then please email "Community Asset not Private Nursery" to the Planning Application Committee before they meet on Wednesday 24th February. The PAC support officer is ookere@wandsworth.gov.uk.
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as this is the correct email and channel to pursue for this matter. We are therefore investigating an alternative channel in the absence of anyone being at the end of this one and will of course post our findings ASAP.
