Issue - meetings

This report examines the means to provide a viable future for the Burnholme school site in Heworth ward. Members are asked to agree further work to identify partners to progress the continued community and sports use of the site, complemented with wider health and enterprise services, the building and operation of a residential care home for older people and the provision of housing.

Resolved:  That the Executive agree to:

(i)                 Note progress towards achieving new uses for the Burnholme site.

(ii)                Seek interest from partners to progress:

·          continued community and sports use on the site;

·          a residential care home for older people;

·          housing provision;

·          health services delivered in a community setting.

(iii)              Agree that Officers develop a spatial plan for site in order to maximise land use and draw up a development timetable, utilising resources already held in the Older Persons’ Accommodation Programme budget.

(iv)              Request that a report is brought back to Executive in Q1 2016 to further examine the risks and rewards of the development and approve the approach/s to procurement of relevant partners.

Reason:  (i) (ii)    To secure the most appropriate and best value approach to develop and deliver the vision for the Burnholme Health & Wellness Campus including the delivery of a residential care home as part of the Older Persons’ Accommodation Programme.

(iii)       So that best use is made of this site.

(iv)       So that the project can progress.

Members considered a report which examined proposed uses for the Burnholme School site, following the closure of the school in 2014. The report asked the Executive to support further work to identify partners to progress the continued community and sports use of the site together with health and enterprise services, the building and operation of a residential care home for older people and the provision of housing.

Officers confirmed that the public open space, shown as site B on the plans attached to the report, was intended to be retained for sports use and active leisure by Applefield’s and other educational establishments and the local community. They also confirmed that ongoing maintenance on the site boundaries would continue.

Members highlighted the importance of the site and its contribution to the social care and public health agenda for the local area and welcomed a report back to the Executive in the new year on project progress.

The Chair confirmed that is was important that all options for the site were considered and that whilst he could not give a guarantee regarding Area B he confirmed that sports facilities would be retained on the site.

It was noted that the following options had been considered:

Option 1 whereby the 3,960 sqm building range within Area A on the east of the site would be refurbished, incorporating the school hall, main corridor and sports facilities, to be refurbished to accommodate the community and third sector tenants, community-facing activity and enterprise spaces, and sports users. 

Alternative variations had also been considered (Options 2 and 3), and rejected as not securing best value.

Option 4 had looked at retaining but modernising the original sports facilities and providing new-build accommodation for the range of other community and enterprise activities.

Resolved:  That the Executive agree to:

(i)                 Note progress towards achieving new uses for the Burnholme site.

(ii)                Seek interest from partners to progress:

·          continued community and sports use on the site;

·          a residential care home for older people;

·          housing provision;

·          health services delivered in a community setting.

(iii)              Agree that Officers develop a spatial plan for the site in order to maximise land use and draw up a development timetable, utilising resources already held in the Older Persons’ Accommodation Programme budget.

(iv)              Request that a report is brought back to Executive in Q1 2016 to further examine the risks and rewards of the development and approve the approach/s to procurement of relevant partners.^1.

Reason:  (i) (ii)    To secure the most appropriate and best value approach to develop and deliver the vision for the Burnholme Health & Wellness Campus including the delivery of a residential care home as part of the Older Persons’ Accommodation Programme.

(iii)       So that best use is made of this site.

(iv)       So that the project can progress.