BLACK MOUNTAINS COLLEGE Options Appraisal MARCH 2020 CONTACTS ALISON POWELL Associate Technical Director dd +02920 926818 Arcadis. Arcadis Cymru House m +07736 723756 St Mellons Business Park e [email protected] Fortran Road Cardiff CF3 0EY Arcadis Consulting (UK) Limited is a private limited company registered in England & Wales (registered number 02212959). Registered Office at Arcadis House, 34 York Way, London, N1 9AB, UK. Part of the Arcadis Group of Companies along with other entities in the UK. Copyright © 2018 Arcadis. All rights reserved. arcadis.com VERSION CONTROL Version Date Author Checker Approver Changes Alison 001 12/03/20 Various Alison Powell Final Draft Options Appraisal Powell This report dated 12 March 2020 has been prepared for Black Mountains College (the “Client”) in accordance with the terms and conditions of appointment dated 19 July 2019 (the “Appointment”) between the Client and Arcadis Consulting (UK) Limited (“Arcadis”) for the purposes specified in the Appointment. For avoidance of doubt, no other person(s) may use or rely upon this report or its contents, and Arcadis accepts no responsibility for any such use or reliance thereon by any other third party. CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1 About Black Mountains College ...................................................................................................................... 1 Vision and Objectives ...................................................................................................................................... 1 Report Structure ............................................................................................................................................... 1 2 CURRENT SITUATION ............................................................................................. 3 Summary of Strategic Case ............................................................................................................................. 3 Current Status of BMC ..................................................................................................................................... 4 Public Consultation .......................................................................................................................................... 4 3 OPTIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION ...................................................................... 6 Do Nothing ........................................................................................................................................................ 6 Utilise Existing Spaces .................................................................................................................................... 6 Greenfield Site .................................................................................................................................................. 8 Former Mid Wales Hospital Site ...................................................................................................................... 9 Planning Considerations ................................................................................................................................... 10 Transport and Access ....................................................................................................................................... 11 Heritage ............................................................................................................................................................ 14 Ecology ............................................................................................................................................................. 15 Water Environment ........................................................................................................................................... 17 Geo-Environmental Review .............................................................................................................................. 20 Infrastructure and Utilities ................................................................................................................................. 21 Architecture and Design Proposals .................................................................................................................. 21 Troed yr Harn Farm ........................................................................................................................................ 23 Planning Considerations ................................................................................................................................... 24 Transport and Access ....................................................................................................................................... 24 Heritage ............................................................................................................................................................ 25 Ecology ............................................................................................................................................................. 26 Water Environment ........................................................................................................................................... 26 Infrastructure and Utilities ................................................................................................................................. 26 Architectural and Design Proposals ................................................................................................................. 26 Options Analysis ............................................................................................................................................ 28 4 PHASING ................................................................................................................. 29 Pilot Phase at Former Mid Wales Hospital Site ........................................................................................... 29 Benefits and Opportunities of Phasing ............................................................................................................. 30 Risks and Constraints ....................................................................................................................................... 30 Pilot Phase at Troed yr Harn Farm ................................................................................................................ 31 Benefits and Opportunities of Phasing ............................................................................................................. 31 Risks and Constraints ....................................................................................................................................... 32 Summary ......................................................................................................................................................... 33 5 PREFERRED STRATEGY AND NEXT STEPS ...................................................... 34 Preferred Strategy .......................................................................................................................................... 34 Next Steps ....................................................................................................................................................... 34 APPENDICES Public Consultation Material [Barton Willmore] Existing Spaces within Talgarth – Assessment Sheets [Graham Frecknall Architects] Outline Heritage Report [Holland Heritage] Black Mountains College 1 Introduction This Options Appraisal was commissioned by Black Mountains College with funding from ARWAIN to help refine discussions around potential sites for the college. The report builds on information contained in the Strategic and Economic Case produced by Aecom in 2019, which identified four high level options for BMC, namely do-nothing, utilise existing sites, build on a greenfield site or redevelop the brownfield site of the former Mid Wales Hospital. The Options Appraisal has been informed by feedback from a comprehensive public consultation exercise held in October 2019. It is important to note that the Options Appraisal has taken a flexible approach to site options; the scope of work has altered slightly during the course of the study, with the inclusion of an additional site which became available during the latter half of 2019 (Troed yr Harn). The incorporation of this site has led to a more focused approach on potential opportunities for phasing of the project, with emphasis around whether a smaller pilot phase could be developed. About Black Mountains College Black Mountains College (BMC) is a new type of Further and Higher Education Institution planned for Mid Wales. Located within the Brecon Beacons National Park, BMC is a proposal for an undergraduate college dedicated to creativity, sustainability and technology that will be a unique institution in the UK. BMC will adopt the successful model of delivery pioneered by Quest University (Canada’s first independent, not-for-profit liberal arts and sciences university devoted to excellence in undergraduate teaching). BMC will primarily offer a degree level (BSc and BA), liberal arts and sciences curriculum in Mid Wales. Based on Quest’s block teaching method, it will deliver a teaching-led curriculum with a maximum of 20 students per class, an annual intake of 200 students, and a