Birkenhead School's 33 home building plan now immersed in acrimony

Bosses at Birkenhead school are angry with the council over an alleged 'delay' in deciding whether to approve controversial plans for 33 homes on a field the school owns.

The independent school, on Beresford Road in Oxton, wants to sell off Noctorum Field and gain planning permission for up to 33 homes on the site. The proposal has faced fierce local opposition.

The homes plan has been submitted along with a proposal to upgrade the school's existing sports hall and build an additional multi-purpose sports facility at its Bidston Road campus, featuring rooms for fitness activities, meetings and events. But a petition against the application, organised by the Noctorum Ridge Residents Association (NRRA), has attracted more than 1,600 signatures.

Wirral Council's Planning Committee was supposed to have the final say on the plan tonight, but headmaster Paul Vicars revealed the school is now going to the Planning Inspectorate for a decision. Mr Vicars said: "The school is frustrated by the delays in determining both planning applications which together would enable us to invest £4m into the sporting futures of young people across Wirral.

"Information provided to them has not been published for public awareness of the benefits that will accrue, leading to some understandably misinformed objections. The proposals for Noctorum Field and the investment in a new sports hall are vital for both Birkenhead School and the wider community. Not only would they unlock new sporting facilities for local young people but they would also further improve access to transformational education, deliver much needed new homes outside of the green belt and increase local biodiversity."

Mr Vicars added: "The failure to determine the applications within the statutory period means we had no choice but to appeal to the Planning Inspectorate for a decision, to ensure that momentum towards the benefits for the community continues, including the two local rugby clubs supported by our proposals.

"The school is disappointed that the clear benefits for the school and wider community appear not to have been recognised and that a prompt and fair local determination hasn't been made. We remain happy to work with the council and look forward to delivering the improvements envisaged."

Documents prepared for tonight's meeting show planning officers wanted the committee to refuse the school's application for several reasons, including the current playing pitches not being surplus to requirements. Officers also felt the proposed mitigation package is inadequate to compensate for the loss of the existing Noctorum Playing Field.

The document added: "The loss of this previously undeveloped site for a residential development, particularly one that has a higher density than the prevailing character of the area, would have a clear adverse impact on the character of this area."

Another part of the document read: "The proposal is considered to constitute unsustainable development due to the site being located a substantial distance from local services and the lack of a dedicated pedestrian footpath for substantial parts of the surrounding road network. This will result in significant highway safety concerns and will dissuade future occupiers of the site to consider alternative, sustainable transport modes."

A spokesperson for Wirral Council said: "The school has known throughout this process that there are local and national policy challenges that come with any application to build on playing fields. However, planning officers had been working with the applicant to address other technical matters right up to the point when they decided to submit an appeal.

"The case has now been taken out of the council's hands and a decision will be made on the scheme by the Planning Inspectorate. The Planning Committee will still consider what decision they would have made if they had determined the application and this will be part of the council's response to the appeal."

A spokesperson for the NRRA, which has been campaigning against the plan, said: "The NRRA are pleased that Wirral [Council's] planning department agree with local residents, Sport England, the lead local flood authority and highways department in strongly advising refusal of Birkenhead School's planning application to destroy its own playing field and to build 33 houses on Noctorum Field.

"We are saddened that the school is however trying to avoid local accountability by referring this application to appeal, prior to the decisions of Wirral's planning department and Planning Committee. This will waste public money as well as more of its own.

"We hope that the headmaster and governors may yet reconsider their decision to pursue this flawed application, and that this playing field and valuable community green space is retained for use by future generations. Wirral has a shortage of outdoor playing pitches and needs this large playing field and pavilion."