Agenda item

The application before Members was for a reserved matters application. Outline planning permission for the Harold Hill Learning Village was granted in December 2009, with a condition that details of the development, to be developed in phases, be submitted within 5 years. Only one phase had been completed and the present application sought to extend the time for reserved matters applications to be submitted.

In accordance with the public participation arrangements the Committee was addressed by an objector with a response from the applicant’s representative.

The objector commented that the application was now out of date and failed to recognise the changes that had taken place in the area. The objector also commented that the open space/playing field was essential to the character of Pyrgo School which would be remaining on the site.

In response the applicant’s representative commented that the Council had recognised the changes that had taken place on the site but now needed to progress with the implementation of the rest of the learning village.

With its agreement Councillor Lawrence Webb addressed the Committee.

Councillor Webb commented that the proposal had been a good plan when originally considered but there had been substantial changes since then, the most significant being that Pyrgo School was now an academy and therefore not under the control of the Council.

During a brief debate members discussed the benefits of the proposal and that the application was in outline and that the details would come back to Committee in the form of reserved matters. Therefore detailed reserved matters for each stage would still need to be submitted in the future.

There was an amendment to the reports with the addition of Condition 38 which required the completion of a planning agreement and the deleting of paragraph “c)” of the Recommendation heads of terms. The wording of Condition 38 was as follows:-

Condition 38:

38.       Planning Obligation Relating to College - The further education college (shown as Havering College and associated parking on Plan Number P8002) hereby approved shall not be commenced until those with an interest in the relevant part of the application site have entered into an agreement under S106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) to secure the following:

·         That subject to securing the necessary legal interest in that part of the land to enable the implementation of that part of the development comprising the further education college within 3 years of the occupation of the further education college, the developer (Havering College or any successor in title to the Quarles Land) shall vacate and demolish all buildings on the Quarles Land and remove all resulting materials including footings of all buildings slabs structures and plant on the Quarles Land and cap services and further immediately following removal of all of the said resulting materials form the Quarles Land the Developer shall cover the Quarles Land with top soil sufficient to promote natural vegetation and sow the Quarles Land with grass seed in the first planting season following removal of material resulting from the demolition if all buildings slabs structures and plant from the Quarles Land.

·         That the developer pay the Council’s reasonable legal costs associated with the legal agreement prior to completion of the agreement.

Reason: The proposed further education college was inappropriate development in the Green Belt. The very special circumstances put forward were particular to Havering College as the controlling owner of the Quarles campus and therefore no other institute should occupy the new building until the Quarles Campus had been vacated and the site cleared.

It was RESOLVED that the proposal was unacceptable as it stood, but would be acceptable subject to:

a)         no direction to the contrary from the Mayor for London,

b)         no call-in following referral of the application to the Secretary of State as a departure from the development plan,

That subject to the foregoing the Head of Regulatory Services be authorised to enter into a legal agreement and upon completion of that agreement, grant planning permission subject to the conditions as set out in the report and to include the following amendments

·         Additional Condition 38 to require Havering College to enter into a legal agreement.

·         Delegation to Head of Regulatory Services to agree wording of Conditions 14 and 15 in consultation with GLA.

·         Delegation to Head of Regulatory Services to negotiate with TfL over any possible bus service contribution.

The vote for the resolution was carried by 9 votes to 2.

Councillors Martin and Williamson voted against the resolution to extend the time limit for reserved matters applications.