Land at Blacksmith's Arms
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Land off North Road, Glossop Education Impact Assessment Report v1-4 (Initial Research Feedback) for Gladman Developments 12th June 2013 Report by Oliver Nicholson EPDS Consultants Conifers House Blounts Court Road Peppard Common Henley-on-Thames RG9 5HB 0118 978 0091 www.epds-consultants.co.uk 1. Introduction 1.1.1. EPDS Consultants has been asked to consider the proposed development for its likely impact on schools in the local area. 1.2. Report Purpose & Scope 1.2.1. The purpose of this report is to act as a principle point of reference for future discussions with the relevant local authority to assist in the negotiation of potential education-specific Section 106 agreements pertaining to this site. This initial report includes an analysis of the development with regards to its likely impact on local primary and secondary school places. 1.3. Intended Audience 1.3.1. The intended audience is the client, Gladman Developments, and may be shared with other interested parties, such as the local authority(ies) and schools in the area local to the proposed development. 1.4. Research Sources 1.4.1. The contents of this initial report are based on publicly available information, including relevant data from central government and the local authority. 1.5. Further Research & Analysis 1.5.1. Further research may be conducted after this initial report, if required by the client, to include a deeper analysis of the local position regarding education provision. This activity may include negotiation with the relevant local authority and the possible submission of Freedom of Information requests if required. A second report would be published after the conclusion of this deeper research and analysis. EPDS Consultants > 0118 978 0091 > www.epds-consultants.co.uk page 2 2. Proposed Development 2.1.1. The current proposed site at North Road, Glossop, lies adjacent to the SK13 7AX postcode area within the planning remit of High Peak Borough Council (HPBC), a unitary authority area with borough status. 2.1.2. The site lies within the primary and secondary catchment areas for schools for which the responsible local education authority is Derbyshire County Council (DCC). 2.2. Housing Mix 2.2.1. At the time of this Assessment Report the current total number of units for the whole site is up to 150 residential dwellings. 2.2.2. The planned start date of the development and first occupancy is yet to be confirmed. The build rate is also yet to be confirmed, although likely to be 30 units per year in line with similar developments of this type and size. 2.2.3. The current proposed mix for this scheme is as follows: Bedrooms Type Market Affordable Intermediate Social Overall 2 bed Semi 12 14 3 11 26 3 bed Semi 27 19 4 15 46 3 bed Detached 8 0 0 0 8 4 bed Semi 21 6 1 5 27 4 bed Detached 29 4 1 3 33 5 bed Detached 8 2 0 2 10 Total 105 45 9 36 150 Table 1: Proposed housing mix for the site at North Road, Glossop. 2.3. Site Location 2.3.1. Glossop is a market town within the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire. It lies about 15 miles east of Manchester, 24 miles west of Sheffield and 32 miles north of the county town of Matlock. For the purposes of this report the site postcode SK13 7AX has been used as it is the nearest postcode for dwellings along North Road in Glossop on the western edge of the site. 2.3.2. A location plan of the site is attached at Appendix A. EPDS Consultants > 0118 978 0091 > www.epds-consultants.co.uk page 3 3. Existing Baseline Conditions 3.1.1. The Department for Education (DfE) defines the Glossop area as “Urban > 10k - less sparse”; it is common for such areas to have more than one primary school and one or more secondary schools in the vicinity. 3.2. Primary Schools Baseline 3.2.1. The local catchment schools are listed below in Table 2. Two miles is considered the maximum reasonable travel distance to school for children aged 8 and under, according the DfE. There are 15 DCC primary schools (including infant and junior schools) within the immediate 2-mile area (straight line distance to the site). 3.2.2. The current net capacity and numbers on roll (NOR) for schools within a 2-mile straight line distance from the site, using DCC school data for January 2012, are: NOR / Current Net Surplus Distance Primary School Total Postcode Capacity Places from the (child age range) Children (Jan 2012) (Jan 2012) Site (miles) (Jan 2012) St Luke's CofE Primary SK13 7BS 210 170 40 0.31 School (5-11) All Saints Catholic SK13 7RJ 98 125 0 0.47 Primary School (5-11) Duke of Norfolk CofE SK13 7RD 315 325 0 0.54 Primary School (5-11) St James' CofE Primary SK13 8EF 315 290 25 0.72 School (3-11) Padfield Community SK13 1EQ 112 120 0 0.80 Primary School (5-11) Dinting CofE Primary SK13 6NX 119 105 14 0.81 School (5-11) Saint Mary's Catholic SK13 8NE 210 150 60 0.82 Primary (5-11) St Andrew's CofE SK13 2DR 260 165 95 0.96 Junior School (7-11) Hadfield Infant School SK13 1PN 210 155 55 1.02 (5-7) Simmondley Primary SK13 6NN 315 325 0 1.02 School (5-11) Table continued on next page EPDS Consultants > 0118 978 0091 > www.epds-consultants.co.uk page 4 Table continued from previous page NOR / Current Net Surplus Distance Primary School Total Postcode Capacity Places from the (child age range) Children (Jan 2012) (Jan 2012) Site (miles) (Jan 2012) St Charles's Catholic SK13 1PJ 210 220 0 1.32 Primary (5-11) Gamesley Community SK13 6HW 280 210 70 1.33 Primary School (5-11) St Margaret's Catholic SK13 6JH 210 65 145 1.56 Primary (3-11) Tintwistle CofE (Aided) SK13 1LY 119 90 29 1.58 Primary School (5-11) Hollingworth Primary School (managed by SK14 8LP 210 209 1 1.89 Tameside MBC) Totals 3,193 534 Table 2: Local Primary School Capacity within a 2-mile straight line distance from the site. [Source: Extracts from “primary_3oct12_derbyshire.pdf”, DCC, attached at Appendix B.] 3.2.3. All schools have a Published Admissions Number (PAN) which indicates the number of pupils the school can take in each year group. If this number is then multiplied by the number of year groups at the school, this gives an indicative capacity of the numbers that the school can theoretically accept. 3.2.4. The above table uses the Audit Commission definition of Surplus Places, in line with best practice in this matter, which treats schools with a negative surplus as though they had a zero surplus. Since the number of pupils a school must admit in any year is directly related to its capacity, any school that chooses to admit numbers beyond that level must necessarily be deemed to be capable of accommodating those numbers. 3.2.5. On the above evidence it is clear that there are a significant number of surplus primary school places local to the proposed development and although some local primary schools appear to be at full capacity, there still remain a large number of surplus places at other local primary schools. 3.2.6. The current total surplus places as a percentage of total indicative local primary school capacity is 16.7% (calculation: 534/3,193). EPDS Consultants > 0118 978 0091 > www.epds-consultants.co.uk page 5 3.2.7. The following graphic indicates the extent of local primary school catchment areas. The proposed development lies within the catchment area of St Luke’s CofE Primary School. Proposed Development Graphic 3: Composite image of Glossop Primary School Catchment Areas, 2012. [Source: DCC website, available in the public domain and reproduced solely for the illustrative purposes of this report.] EPDS Consultants > 0118 978 0091 > www.epds-consultants.co.uk page 6 3.3. Derbyshire County Council primary school transport policy: “Is my child entitled to free school transport to an infant, junior or primary school? We provide assistance with transport for full time infant, junior and primary school pupils who do not live within walking distance of their normal area school. This distance is two miles for children under eight and three miles for children over eight. It is measured by the shortest available route. There may be exceptions to this if we agree that the route to the normal area school is dangerous for a child (accompanied if necessary) to undertake on foot. Bus passes or refunds are issued where appropriate and special contract transport is arranged if public transport is not available. There may be exceptions to the transport rules if we agree that the route to the normal area school is dangerous for a child, accompanied if necessary, to undertake on foot. Spare places on a contract bus may be provided on a concessionary basis for children who are not normally entitled to free transport, however a fare will be charged. Transport to faith schools Parents choosing a voluntary aided faith school on religious grounds may be eligible to receive assistance with transport if the chosen school is the normal area voluntary school (in most cases the nearest voluntary school) and the school is outside the walking distance as explained above. In addition, in the case of Catholic schools, only Roman Catholic baptised children are eligible to receive assistance with travel.