New Secondary School Littleborough Site

Report to Cabinet Date of Meeting Portfolio Report Author Public/Private Document 30th March 2021 Cabinet Member for Getting a Good Start Fay Davies Public Private: Appendix New Secondary School Littleborough Site Executive Summary 1.1 To move forward on the delivery of the new Star Academies’ Littleborough Secondary school, agreement is needed to dispose of the land at Littleborough Playing Fields 1.2 Any conditions required either before disposal of the land, during the process of building the school or after occupation of the school are to be agreed within the Heads of Terms agreement and this report seeks approval to delegate final sign off of the document as detailed under the Recommendation below 1.3 The Littleborough Playing fields were previously used for the Littleborough High School, but have for 31 years been accessible to the public and used for community sports Current legislation on safeguarding in schools will mean that enclosure of the field will be required, and building of the school will mean that the site will be also be fenced off through the building process 1.4 Secretary of State approval will be needed for both the change of use and the disposal of the Littleborough Playing field Council officers will work with the Department for Education, once full plans for the site are available, to support the submission for this approval Approval to dispose of the land is being sought now from Cabinet in order to give the Department for Education comfort that the project can move forward swiftly if and when the Secretary of State approval is granted Recommendation 2.1 Approve the disposal of the Littleborough Playing Field site edged red in Appendix 2.2 Approve provision of a section 151 letter from the Council to the Department for Education to cover the expenditure on offsite highways costs up to a maximum of £1,000,000, as required by the Heads of Terms agreement, with the understanding that further funding may be requested These costs will be met from school’s Basic Need funding 2.3 That the Director of Economy and the Director of Resources, acting jointly, be given delegated authority for final sign off of the Heads of Terms for the disposal of site 2.4 That the Assistant Director of Resources (Legal, Governance & Workforce) be authorised to advise appropriate Council Services, to review and prepare the appropriate legal documents and execute such documents on behalf of the Council Reason for Recommendation 3.1 The local authority has a statutory duty to offer every child living in the borough, and who applies, a school place Birth rates have been increasing for the last 15 years and secondary schools in Rochdale have reached capacity The area of north Pennines has continued to see increasing new housing, and has seen continued and sustained rises in pupil numbers Numbers of pupils are expected to continue to rise until 2027/28 3.2 In June 2019 the government announced north Pennines had received a successful bid from the Star Academies trust to open a new Secondary school in the area Previously in June 2018, Cabinet had approved Littleborough Playing fields as the site for the new school 3.3 The Star Academies trust have had 14 new schools opened through the governments free school programme that have all had “Outstanding” with their first Ofsted rating The trust is committed to working with all stakeholders in the local community and want to deliver a school that continues to uphold its reputation for excellence and leadership 3.4 Legal and commercial details related to disposal of the Littleborough Playing Fields site are contained in Appendix 3.5 Because of the complicated nature of the site location for the Secondary school, the Department for Education requires a commitment from the Council with regards to sharing costs of a Planning Authority compliant plan for highways works for access to the site, as requested in 2.2 Key Points for Consideration 4.1 On the 24th October 2017 a report was submitted to Cabinet which showed and a new Secondary school would be required in the Pennines /Rochdale area by 2022 4.2 On the 26th June 2018 the Cabinet approved the lease of a parcel of land at Littleborough Playing fields for use for a new secondary Free school with two caveats; firstly that if the Secretary of State’s consent is not given for the lease, or secondly, if feasibility assessments show the site is too costly to develop, then the lease of land is approved at Rutherford Park on Wardle Road 4.3 On the 30th October 2018 the Cabinet approved, in principle, to lease the land for the new Littleborough school to the winner of the Wave 13 bidding process; noting that the lease would be based on the standard Academy Template, but would be subject to further Cabinet approval being sought to agree any specific Heads of Terms 4.4 Reports to Cabinet 26th February 2019 and 29th September 2020 reported on contingency planning for temporary places in the borough for Secondary school intakes for September 2019 and 2020, and 2021 and 2022 respectively 4.5 The 2019 report to Cabinet noted the DfE statement on Wave 13 schools that had been approved by central government, would not be open until 2021 at the earliest The report approved funding for additional capacity in existing schools across Rochdale for 2019 and 2020; up to 60 places in 2019 and up to 120 places in 2020 4.6 The 2020 report on school places (paragraph 4.3) noted a forecast for a shortage of 79 places in Pennines for 2021 and 77 places in Pennines for 2022 At that time Cabinet approved funding for an expansion at Wardle Academy to provide 100 new places; 50 additional places for September 2021 intake and 50 additional places for September 2022 Wardle’s Published Admission number would subsequently revert back to its previous level of 240 pupils for September 2023 4.7 October 2020 school census information shows Pennines secondary schools are now full or close to full in all year groups, and Wardle Academy has over capacity numbers in of its year groups This reflects both the popularity of the two Pennine Secondary schools and the increase in need over the last few years 4.8 For the 2019 intake there were 54 appeals from families for places in Pennines Secondary schools For 2020 intake there were 96 place appeals 4.9 The Littleborough playing fields are Council owned land that previously formed playing fields for the Littleborough High School that closed on 31 August 1990 Like many playing fields of older style schools the boundary fence line of the playing fields allowed access at various points on to the field 4.10 The playing fields are, until 1st April 2021, under a licence to Rochdale Boroughwide Cultural Trust (Link4Life) who manage and rent out the pitches to local clubs The number and use of the pitches is covered by the RBC Playing Pitch Strategy policy document, which is currently out for consultation having been updated in 2020 Notice of Termination of the licence for the site, from the above date, has been served on Link4Life and Link4Life are in agreement with the same 4.11 During the 2020/21 football season, ending the end of March 2021, there was one junior club paying to use the pitches Some years previously, adult football teams moved their play to Firgrove and adult rugby moved to Rakewood Road Link4Life and the Council’s Playing Pitch Strategy Manager are working with the junior club to facilitate use of an alternative site in Littleborough for next season’s play 4.12 Two Primary schools use what is termed locally as the Littleborough Playing Fields for their sports curriculum delivery; Holy Trinity CE Primary and Littleborough Community Primary Holy Trinity CE Primary school use playing pitches outside of the red line and are therefore not under consideration here The Holy Trinity field is shown in Appendix 4.13 The rebuilding programme of Littleborough Community Primary school, which was announced by the Department for Education on the 5th February 2021 is now moving ahead and reconfiguration of the Littleborough campus site will deliver improved outdoor sports space for the Primary school within its secure fence line 4.14 Concern about lack of Secondary school places has been a worry for staff at Primary schools in the area and they are very aware of stress caused about Secondary transition for their year pupils Pupils and families currently worried about not securing a preferred Secondary school feel they are having to make difficult choices of possibly moving children to Primary schools out of the area 4.15 The Governing Board at Littleborough Community Primary School have provided a letter supporting the building of the new Secondary school on the playing fields 4.16 The decision to recommend the Littleborough Playing fields as the site for the new Secondary school, due to its multiple users and its value to the community has been one that has been re-evaluated several times A community user agreement for access to the new Secondary school sports pitches will be required as part of the planning permission process for the school 4.17 The Star Academies trust, who will run the new school, have had 14 new schools opened through the governments free school programme that have all had “Outstanding” with their first Ofsted rating The trust is committed to working with all stakeholders in the local community and want to deliver a school that continues to uphold its reputation for excellence and leadership 4.18 Littleborough Village centre is a conservation area and is a very desirable location to live, and schools form a very vital part of the infrastructure needed to keep an area vibrant and desirable A new Secondary school in Littleborough will expand the community hub in the village, giving families security that their children will be able to make friends and attend schools locally all the way up to age 16, thus avoiding the very difficult choice currently faced of either long travel-to-school journeys or families moving out of the area 4.19 Negotiation on the Heads of Terms agreement has been complicated by site access issues and the Department for Education have agreed to pay for offsite highways works limited to £500,000 If further funds are required to make the Planning application compliant then these costs will be met by the Council through Basic Needs funding, requested here up to £1,000,000 Costs are not expected to exceed this amount, but further approval or delegated approval will be sought at a later date as necessary Alternatives Considered 4.21 Secondary school places have been under pressure in the north Pennines area for several years and it continues to be a challenge to place families in their preferred schools in the area A decision to not dispose of this land for the school would mean more children travelling to central Rochdale for their Secondary schooling with more families possibly opting to move out of borough Costs and Budget Summary 5.1 The monetary cost to Rochdale BC is the land value which is dependent on the other possible uses of the site which are limited under the Unitary Development Plan (UDP (2006)) 5.2 Cost of up to £1,000,000 for offsite highways works as required by the section 151 letter stipulated within the Heads of Terms to facilitate access to the site as required for offsite highways works, with the caveat that this amount may need to be reassessed and a further report to Cabinet or request for delegated approval for additional spend 5.3 There are costs to the Children’s Services schools budget associated with the Alternative plan with placing children in schools further than the miles statutory walking distance for Secondary school age children, and these costs are very likely to grow if the school does not open Risk and Policy Implications 6.1 The site within the red line (appendix 1) is playing field land and has Protection of Existing Recreational Open Space in the UDP (2006) and this aspect must be addressed through the planning submission 6.2 The Littleborough Playing Fields are in the council’s Playing Pitch Strategy so a requirement for a community use agreement will be required as part of the planning approval for the school 6.3 Secretary of State approval is required for both change of use of playing fields and disposal of playing fields The application to the Secretary of State for this approval cannot happen before full plans for the school site are developed RBC are working with the Department for Education and Star Academies to gain the full approval to deliver the new school 6.4 The Council has the power under Section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 to dispose of its land in any way it thinks fit, including sale of a freehold interest, the granting of a lease and the granting of easements The only constraint is that, except with the consent of the Secretary of State, the disposal must be for the best consideration reasonably obtained 6.5 The duty to seek best consideration is subject to certain exceptions The Local Government Act 1972: General Disposal Consent 2003, makes provision for the Council to dispose of land where the consideration is less than the best that can reasonably be obtained, known as an ‘under-value’ 6.6 In these circumstances, the Council must obtain specific consent from the Secretary of State However, specific consent is not required where the difference between the unrestricted value (or market value) of the land to be disposed of and the consideration accepted (the under-value) is £2 Million or less and there are specific circumstances being that the local authority considers that the purpose for which the land is to be disposed is likely to contribute to the achievement of economic, social or environmental wellbeing of the whole or any part of its area, or of all or any persons resident or present in its area 6.7 There would also be a requirement to alter the use of the land for School purposes Any new building on either site would have to go through a full planning permission consultation process Disposal of the site would be conditional upon satisfactory planning permission being obtained 6.8 In the event that the Secretary of State does not approve the disposal and change of use the Littleborough Playing fields will be retained by the council and the school will not be built 6.9 Risks associated with an increase in the amount for offsite highways works to be revisited, if needed at a later date, must be weighed against the spend by the Department for Education of approximately £14m on the new school and the possibility of the school not being built if the risks and liabilities to the Department for Education become too large Consultation 7.1 Consultation process may be required within the Secretary of State approval process This will be managed by the Department for Education 7.2 Consultation with stakeholders is required as part of the planning process for the school Background Papers Place of Inspection Various place planning reports to All reports are available via the RBC Cabinet referred to in point website For Further Information Contact: Fay Davies, , fay.davies@rochdale.gov.uk ... open a new Secondary school in the area Previously in June 2018, Cabinet had approved Littleborough Playing fields as the site for the new school 3.3 The Star Academies trust have had 14 new schools... the new Secondary school sports pitches will be required as part of the planning permission process for the school 4.17 The Star Academies trust, who will run the new school, have had 14 new schools... children to Primary schools out of the area 4.15 The Governing Board at Littleborough Community Primary School have provided a letter supporting the building of the new Secondary school on the playing