PROPOSALS for a new school in Bodmin may not come to fruition in the next decade, despite a recent planning approval setting aside land for a primary school.

In its planning application for the construction of 58 homes adjacent to Pandarosa Barns, opposite Bodmin Hospital, Wainhomes South West was able to obtain approval for the development not to include any affordable dwellings as it would hand a portion of land designated for a primary school to be built.

It successfully argued that if it was to both contribute the land which had been earmarked for a primary school and provide affordable housing, it would make the proposed development unaffordable.

However, concerns were raised by a former mayor of Bodmin after the agreement between the developer and the council contained a clause which stated that if the school was not built within ten years, the developer would be able to purchase the land back for £1.

After contacting Hilary Frank, Cornwall Council’s portfolio holder for children, families and schools, Cllr Coppin discovered that there were presently no plans to build a new school in Bodmin during the next decade due to a ‘falling birth rate’.

Cllr Frank responded to Cllr Coppin stating: “Data shared with me by officers shows that Bodmin has seen significant housing growth, with more than 1,500 homes built since 2010 and further development planned. However, this has coincided with a sustained decline in birth rates. As a result, local primary schools currently have around 300 surplus places, which is about 20 per cent of total capacity. This is projected to increase to around 400 surplus places by 2029.

“Although there are some early indications that birth rates may begin to increase, current forecasts show that the number of primary school places in Bodmin will remain sufficient until at least 2035.

“We will continue to monitor annual NHS data, pupil numbers and housing delivery closely. Should demand increase significantly in the future, a range of options would be considered.

“Ensuring we have the right number of school places in the right locations remains a key priority, and we will update Bodmin Town Council should the position change.”

Typically, all developments in the Bodmin area of more than nine dwellings are required to have a proportion of properties dedicated as ‘affordable’ – whether by ‘affordable rent’ where the completed houses are transferred to a social housing provider or to be sold using discounted ‘shared ownership’ schemes.

In the planning application (PA23/07573), Wainhomes South West submitted evidence that stated that if they were required to provide the land for the primary school at no cost to the council and provide 30 per cent affordable housing (approximately 17 of the 58 houses), it would make the entire scheme commercially unviable.

This was accepted by Cornwall Council, on the basis that the developer would be making a loss on the land purchased at market rate for the primary school and then sold to the council for £1.

Cornwall Council’s affordable housing team stated in a response to the submission that if the primary school land hadn’t been included in the development, it would have meant a development of 90 dwellings, of which 30 per cent (27 properties) would be required to be affordable.

It stated: “The impact is a loss in unit numbers from circa 90 to 58 and significantly impacts on the viability of the project. Secondly, there are the abnormal development costs associated with developing the site (£1.3-million) including site attenuation, service diversions and need for a sub-station..

“…for clarity, if the land for the primary school was not being provided as part of this application, then it is the affordable housing teams view that a policy compliant scheme could have been delivered.”

If, using the current planning rules for large developments, a developer was to later submit a planning application for 32 dwellings on the land set aside for a primary school, a 30 per cent affordable housing requirement would see a requirement for approximately nine affordable dwellings, representing a total of 10 per cent of the cumulative total of 90 properties.

Within the Section 106 agreement between the developer, the land owners and Cornwall Council, concerns were raised over a clause within the agreement that stated that if the school was not built within ten years of it coming into force, the developer would be permitted to buy back the land for the same sum it sold it for.

Despite the deal, Cornwall Council have confirmed that there are no plans to build another school in Bodmin, with data suggesting that the birth rate in the area was falling and existing school places were not fully subscribed.

Asked why it agreed to a time-limited deal on land if it wasn’t going to build a primary school, a spokesperson for Cornwall Council stated: “Because current data suggests a new school will not be needed for at least 10 years.

“Despite plans for new housing developments, projections show that spare primary school places in Bodmin will increase in line with a national fall in birth rates.

“The 10-year time limit is consistent with Section 106 agreements with other housing developers.”

One suggestion that had been made by Bodmin town councillor Debbie Henderson was that the land might be better used as a school for students with additional learning needs, as places for such a service continued to be stretched.

However, the spokesperson for Cornwall Council stated that this was not possible in the Section 106 agreement. They said: “Under the Section 106 agreement between the council and the developer, the land is intended to support future mainstream primary education provision should it be required.

“Bodmin has recently received significant investment in SEND provision, including a new school (Bosvena) which supports learners aged 5-16 whose needs cannot be met in mainstream schools.”

Cllr Andy Coppin said that he feared this was history repeating itself, stating: “Nearly 30 years ago, the then North Cornwall District Council released a master plan for Bodmin that included a new primary school at Gilbert Road.

“Due to a ‘drop in the birth rate’, the school was not built then, and the land was not reserved for one, becoming housing. 15 years later and the schools were oversubscribed. They ended up building an extension to St Petroc’s Primary school which made it too big and not as pleasant an environment for its young children.”

Cllr Coppin added that he believes that having no plans for a new school were ‘short sighted’.

Cornwall Council’s spokesperson was asked what assessment had been made relating to the future needs the town’s current primary school estate, particularly the example of the lifespan and future suitability of some existing school buildings at Beacon Academy, which were built in the late 19th century.

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With respect to if the land could be utilised for a new school in that scenario, the spokesperson said: “Our latest forecasts and assessments, which take into account factors such as planned housing developments and data on birth rates, indicate that a new primary school will not be needed until at least 2035. We will continue to monitor the situation in Bodmin, as we do all areas.”