Deadline for Comments About New Bolder Academy

Local residents group has concerns over access

The submission for a new non-denominational, mixed, secondary school for 1150 children serving Brentford and Isleworth has been received by the Council.

The school would be called the Bolder Academy and the proposed site is along MacFarlane Lane in Osterley (near the Tesco supermarket just off Gillette Corner).

The proposed school is part of a larger plan for two schools and site swapping involving the Grasshoppers Rugby Club the site of which is to be vacated for the Bolder Academy. The proposal is that the Rugby Club will move to the northern half of the old White Lodge sports site along Syon Lane. The southern half of the old sports field is now taken up by the Nishkam all-through school (primary and secondary) for 1400 children which is currently under construction.

To facilitate the Rugby Club move the Council is raising over £9 million to develop the northern half of the site and has also agreed to waive two years of rent arrears owed to the Council. £6 million will be in the form of a direct grant and the remaining money will be raised by selling SKY some of the council-owned Metropolitan Open Land adjacent to the proposed school site.

A residents' campaign in Osterley fought a hard battle against building the Nishkam school on Metropolitan Open Land which had long been used for sports purposes. Despite overwhelming local opposition the Council's Planning Committee approved the submission at its meeting on 3rd December 2015. MOL is normally supposed to be protected from development except in “exceptional circumstances”. Hounslow Council believes that those special circumstances apply and has been supporting the proposed Bolder Academy.

OWGRA, Osterley and Wyke Green Residents' Association, supports the Bolder Academy, as a mixed comprehensive school is needed to serve the local area, but have concerns about the transport aspects and safety for children arriving at and leaving the school.  You can access their views here their views here. Students for both Nishkam school (currently being built) and the Bolder Academy totalling some 3000 students will all have access using Syon Lane which is already highly congested.

The easiest way to submit your comments is to e-mail them to planningcomments@hounslow.gov.uk making sure that you put the planning reference in the subject box of the email (P/2017/1417), give your full details (name and home address) and state clearly whether your purpose is to approve or object to the application in question. Comments can be as brief or detailed as you like and OWGRA would appreciate being copied on at info@owgra.org.uk

More information is also available at www.planningbolder.org.uk 

The school will be a 6 form entry for 11-16 and provide post-16 education for 250 students as well as providing a specialist centre for 25 SEN children.

The expectation is that the school will be open in September 2018 and you can register your interest for a place now.

May 3, 2017