CAMPAIGNERS trying to save a historic school building are calling on South Gloucestershire Council to dump the developer that wants to demolish it.
The Save Brockeridge Community Group wants to see the Victorian building in Woodend Road, which was part of Watermore Primary School and previously Brockeridge Infant School, preserved and repurposed during redevelopment.
The council agreed to sell the site to housing association LiveWest to help fund the new Watermore Primary School building in Lower Stone Close, which opened in 2020.
LiveWest’s original plans included converting the the original 1846 school building into six flats.
But last year the council said it wasn’t possible to economically develop the site, and maximise the amount of affordable housing, without demolishing it.
Demolition plans were dropped in the face of huge opposition, but when LiveWest and the council came back with new plans for up to 21 affordable homes on the site this year, they still involved knocking down the old school.
In the summer the council said LiveWest had completed a review of its plans – but still intends to demolish the school building.
‘Remove LiveWest’
Resident Craig Hennessey, of Save Brockeridge, said: “Save Brockeridge is calling for the council to remove LiveWest from the redevelopment and replace them with a developer that specialises in converting historical buildings and respects Frampton Cotterell’s character.
“As no contract had been signed between South Gloucestershire Council and LiveWest. a new preferred bidder should be selected.”
He said LiveWest’s latest plans to recreate the school facade would put it “in a different position and to different proportions” to the current building, and the new houses and bungalows proposed don’t reflect the character, style, or materials used in the surrounding area.
‘Dismissive’
Save Brockeridge says LiveWest has been “completely dismissive” of the Frampton Cotterell & Coalpit Heath Village Design Statement, a document to guide development drawn up in 2006 after extensive local consultations.
Craig said: “The Village Design Statement acknowledges that the villages have changed and developed over centuries, and will continue to do so. However, the residents want those changes to respect the existing character of the village and to follow the traditions that have shaped the present community.
“The old school building at Brockeridge and the surrounding site deserves a developer whose entire model is structured around converting and retrofitting heritage assets.”
School building will be ‘reinterpreted’
The Voice asked the council whether LiveWest had submitted its latest plans, and whether it would consider finding a new developer.
The authority said no planning application had been submitted but the planning process would include “an assessment of heritage impacts and public feedback”.
A council spokesperson said: “We recognise the importance many residents place on preserving the character of the former Brockeridge School site.
“It was the council’s preference to try and preserve the Victorian building if possible, and while planning permission granted in 2018 as part of proposals for a wider redevelopment would have allowed the existing building to be converted into six flats, that permission expired in October 2021 and was not implemented.
“Since then, LiveWest has developed proposals which look to balance modern, energy-efficient building standards with retaining the site’s historic character.
“Although the current proposals include demolition of the existing buildings, key features of the Victorian school, including the southern façade, lancet windows and stone detailing, have been reinterpreted within the structure of the new apartment building design.”
Picture: Residents in the Save Brockeridge campaign outside the former infant school