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At last Somerset Education has applied for Planning Permission to re-build the school - but it is only "half a job" - and will it ever get built?
The current plan, to replace the existing flint building which dates from 1879, and to renovate the more recent brick building, will give 4 new classrooms and a library, but will leave 4 temporary classrooms still out on the field!
There is an outside chance that Somerset County Council may vote the additional funds to complete the 8 classrooms, but there are factors that could halt the project. Here are some of the issues:
Why, in 1996, did the County officers reject the Parish Council's proposal of a green field site near the existing school when:
It was acceptable to the District Council
It would have reduced disruption to the present school
It would have avoided a culture clash in the middle of the village
It could have released the redevelopment potential of the existing site, which would have benefited the villagers and taxpayers alike
The plans supplied to the Parish Planning Committee show street access to the school is very confined, and County Highways failed to respond to the committee's request for a report. However, Parish pressure has elicited a re-drawing exercise, but this does not excuse County from failing to report to the committee.
County would not provide costings for comparison of the partial demolition and repair option with the proposed total demolition option. Public opinion was unable to verify the chosen option, as the data was not available.
At its meeting on 5 January 1999, Parish Planning accepted with regret the need to demolish the Old School Building. In response to the pressures of available money, and the need to alleviate the urgent problems within the school, the committee recommended approval of the basic proposals. Here are some of the comments it included:
An alternative library roofline should be considered using "velux" or "dorma" type windows, to complement the retained red brick building
A full record of the Old School Building should be produced
Flint stone recovered from the Old Building, and part of the old entrance steps should be incorporated into the school area
A roadside footway, and an additional entrance gate to the adjacent playing fields should be provided, to facilitate "safe routes to school"
It is known that bats and birds roost in the roofspace of the Old School Building, and if these are identified as protected species, then the work has to stop.
On the recommendation of English Heritage, the Secretary of State declined to give the Old School Building the status of a 'listed building'. However, the school's red brick building was believed to be already 'listed', and because of that, it is incorporated into the new design. Since then, it has been determined that it is not 'listed' after all.
Following its 3 February 1999 meeting, at which the Regulation Board of Somerset County Council shelved their decision on Tatworth School, they have now held their site meeting at the school.
During the widely debated public airing of the issues on 16 February 1999, at which several District Councillors were present, as well as many parishioners, it emerged that:
- a decision will be made on the future of the school on 3 March 1999 at County Hall, Taunton.
- health and safety issues are to be respected, and the expressed desires to reuse some of the old building's flintstone cannot be met.
- the new design will blend with the existing red brick building, with the roof height reduced and reshaped.
- the County Council was made aware how much a shambles the process has been allowed to become since the need for major works was initially recognised in 1995.
Comment
Why, on 3 February 1999, did the County’s Regulation Board arrogantly stamp on public discussion of the issue in favour of a trip to see the school - which they could have done at any time over the last 2 years?
Could it be because the County is chopping the education budget out of sheer pique? Are they trying to get at the government which sees their poor record, and has capped them? Are they playing politics with our children?
Let them rise to the challenge to get Tatworth school built --
and built properly.
Wednesday 3 March 1999
Sitting as a Planning Committee,
Somerset County Council's Regulation Board finally approved the
plans for the first phase of Tatworth's new Primary School. With
a start date variously reported as July or September 1999, the
work on the 3 classrooms and library block is expected to last
until September 2000.
The remaining 4 or 5 required temporary classrooms will still be located on the field unless the County is successful in gaining additional funding from the Labour government to implement phase 2.
The current approval has 2 main conditions:
- the completion of the new access for "Safe Routes to School", currently scheduled for completion within 6 months of occupation, is to be defered and delegated. This means that all the interested parties will be drawn together, with the intention of producing a high standard "showcase" result as soon as possible.
- the final choice of external materials will be undertaken in consultation with both the Parish Council and South Somerset District Council.
It was also stated that "it was totally unacceptable, after 4 years, to produce an unacceptable design initially", and a complaint is to be sent to the Corporate Director (Education) recommending more person to person contact in the future.
Friday 26 March 1999
Tatworth & Forton Parish
Council, meeting for the last time before the local election on 6
May 1999, was told of the progress on the "Safe Routes to
School" project, and the choice of external materials for
the school:
- With a refreshing and hitherto unprecedented burst of cooperation, the village Playing Field Management Committee, South Somerset District Council, Somerset County Council and Morrish Builders have all been drawn together to produce a plan for immediate implementation.
Three paths will be provided around the village playing field, to give access to the school site via a new gateway. The ownership and ultimate control of the paths will be retained by the Management Committee, while some material and landscaping will be donated by Morrish Builders from the surplus at their nearby "Highfields" housing estate. This donation will count financially as the contribution from the parish.- Where posssible, the roof of the new school will re-use the Welsh slate from the demolished building - being augmented by the cheaper Spanish slate where necessary. The west wall - facing "School Lane" - will be finished in stone, while the remaining walls will be brick and render. Part of the north facing gable will accommodate a clock, and special apertures will also be provided to enable access by roosting bats, which are rumoured to inhabit the site.
Sad Loss - Monday 29 November 1999
Sadly today the demolition of the 19th century school building in Tatworth is well underway. It has been a long time coming and many villagers who have been taught there will be very sad. Especially sad, as the second phase has not yet been funded, leaving half of the school to have their lessons in temporary classrooms.
The Somerset County Planner has said that not enough useable slate has been recovered from the old roof, and he has agreed to the use of new slate throughout.
Hot News - Monday 21 Febuary 2000
Following the inability of Somerset County Council to live up to its own expectation of recovering slate from the old school roof, there now comes the astounding revelation that insufficient churt stone has been recovered from the demolished building, and that the appearance of the new building now has to be changed.
Originally, the new building was approved to have 2 bandings of recovered churtstone on the faces visible to the street. This has now been reduced to one.
Comment
Why has there been such a failure to recover sufficient slate and stone from the demolished building? What was the cause of it, and were the procedures correctly followed?
- Could it be that with more care during demolition, the quality stone would not have been so highly contaminated with the remaining rubble, or the roof slate less damaged? Is this a measure of someone's incompetence? If so, whose?
- What are Somerset County Council's procedures for amending plans for developments which are already approved? Were they adhered to in this case? If not, what would an ombudsman's verdict be?
- What has happened to the slate and stone which should have been reclaimed?
- Hundreds of tonnes of stone, contaminated with rubble, have been trucked off site and can be seen in various locations around the parish. Click here to see where some of it has gone.