Stewart Bell raises concerns over Norfolk County Council relocation of Fred Nicholson School to Swaffham

A former town councillor feels ignored amid the construction of a special needs school next to his caravan site.

Stewart Bell, who used to sit on Swaffham Town Council, says he wants the relocation of Dereham’s Fred Nicholson School to Lynn Road in Swaffham to be reconsidered .

Norfolk County Council made the decision to move the facility to better accommodate its growing number of pupils, upping the size from 197 to 224.

However, Mr Bell is concerned about the additional traffic this will bring - as well as construction noise and the potential of it being an “eyesore” to those who live there.

But the county council has insisted that a “comprehensive consultation was conducted”.

“Most of my tenants are all retired and they bought their homes for the nice view, which they are entitled to,” Mr Bell said.

“But allegedly not, because the powers of Norfolk County Council are answerable to no one.”

The former town mayor is frustrated because he feels the authority did not take into consideration his or his tenants’ views about building it in front of their homes.

“I didn’t realise we were in Russia, but there you go,” he added.

“There is an alternative space on the other side of Swaffham off the bypass, which would’ve been the perfect place to put it, but they did not listen.”

The relocation is already well under way, with the steel frame on the 3.2-hectare site completed and internal work now in progress.

Mr Bell also raised the need for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to have a quiet place to learn, pointing out that the chosen site is underneath an RAF flight path.

“The council said they would be soundproofing the building, but if they didn’t put it there in the first place, they wouldn’t have had to do that, and it wouldn’t require all of that extra money,” he added.

With the school being built where it is, he believes that his land, which has been in his family for generations, will be almost halved in value because “nobody wants to build next to a school”.

“We can’t stop it from being built, but if someone from the council sat down and explained their way of thinking and my tenants explained their way of thinking, maybe we can find some form of middle ground,” Mr Bell said.

A spokesperson for the county council explained that the area “urgently” needs additional spaces for the increasing number of children with complex needs.

“A comprehensive consultation was conducted as part of the planning process, and we are optimistic that the new school will become an integral part of the local community, just as it is in its current location,” they said.

They added that children, parents, and school staff are excited about the move, which came as part of its multi-million-pound Local First Inclusion (LFI) programme.

“This programme aims for children to thrive with the support they need to be happy, healthy, and achieve their full potential.

“LFI includes well-supported mainstream provision, new special schools and Specialist Resource Bases (SRBs), expanding existing special schools, and improving the admissions process.”

The relocated school is due to open in spring 2026.