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There is still no guarantee a new Preston secondary school can be built on the site where politicians and education bosses believe it belongs – with barely a month to go until they have to plump for a plan B.
Land between Tabley Lane and Sandy Lane, in Higher Bartle, was reserved for the 600-pupil facility as part of a new housing estate that was granted permission more than three years ago.
Lancashire County Council has previously said delays in acquiring the plot meant it would have to look for an alternative site elsewhere – and, in 2022/23, the authority turned its attention to the former home of the now defunct Tulketh High School in Ingol.
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However, last autumn County Hall held out the prospect that the Higher Bartle site could be secured sooner than first thought – and acknowledged that it was the preferred location for the new school. In January, it then set an end-of-March deadline by which point it said it needed to be in control of the land in order to be able to start building in time to have the facility open in September 2027 – when the additional places will be needed.
Now, with clock ticking ever louder, the county council has still not got its hands on the site – and there are also claims the delay is at least partially its own doing rather than it being a victim of circumstances.
A recent cabinet meeting heard the authority was ploughing ahead with preparations to build in Higher Bartle in the hope its plans come to pass – while also keeping its options open.
Developer Taylor Wimpey, which is building 320 homes on the wider site is itself yet to gain control of the plot from the landowner – a vital precursor to the county council being able to begin work on the portion earmarked for the school.
As the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) revealed last month, the authority has been granted physical access in order to allow it to carry out a topographical survey of the land, which is to be completed this week.
Cabinet member for education and skills Jayne Rear said the work was vital in order to glean “more detailed information about the condition of the land – and is essential to develop a full scheme and indicative costs”.
However, Preston West division county councillor John Potter has told the LDRS he understands the hold-up has its roots in the compulsory purchase of another tranche of land needed for a works compound during the construction of the link road known as William Young Way, which was developed as part of the Preston Western Distributor Road scheme.
The Lib Dem says there has been a delay in the county council honouring an understanding that that plot would be returned to its original owner – who also happens to be the owner of the site where the school and housing is planned.
Conservative-run Lancashire County Council was approached for comment on the claims.
At the cabinet meeting, County Cllr Rear said a “final report” would be presented to members for a decision next month.
She added: “Our next steps are that officers are continuing to prioritise the design work with the intention of finalising a detailed delivery plan in March – but we can [also] continue to develop options for the Tulketh site, which will enable us to review the projected timescales and costs for each [of them].”
Deputy Labour opposition group leader Jennifer Mein said she found it “absolutely shocking and deplorable” that the county council had still not acquired the school land, when the facility was first envisaged more than a decade ago as part of the Preston, South Ribble and Lancashire City Deal with the government, to deliver thousands of new homes and jobs.
The secondary school later became part of the North Preston Masterplan when that document was drawn up in 2017 to guide the development of around 5,500 new properties in that corner of the city over a 20-year period.
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