Officials back school proposal for King's Lynn community centre
Children with special educational needs would be put at the heart of the community if plans to expand their Lynn school get the go-ahead, a trust has claimed.
Proposals for the Churchill Park School to provide sixth form education from the nearby Fairstead Community Centre will be put before borough councillors next week.
And officials have urged them to back the plan, describing it as an “essential, community use” for the site.
The plan, which has already been backed by regional education chiefs, would allow the school to use part of the existing centre to accommodate up to 20 students.
A report to a special meeting of West Norfolk Council’s planning committee next Thursday said the plan would allow for more placements for youngsters with complex needs to be provided for Lynn and West Norfolk, which is described as “an area of significant need”.
A supporting case contained in the report said: “The proposal is of paramount importance for the continued high-quality provision that is required for some of the most vulnerable and needy young people / adults from Kings Lynn and West Norfolk.
“The application centres on the desire to make use of communal building that would place our young people at the centre of the community in which they are part of every day and will provide a strong base for partnership working for those young people, the school and the community whilst offering the support of the central site close by.”
The application has been called in for committee decision by one of the area’s ward councillors, Labour’s Margaret Wilkinson.
But the report, published today, said there had been no public or consultee objections to the plan.
The papers said students would be taken to and from the centre by minibus.
And planning officials said the application did meet policy guidelines.
They added: “Whilst the proposal will result in the loss of one community facility, the new proposed use is also considered to be an essential, educational, community use.”
