Flats plan for Edwardian school building rejected

The building is the former home of St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School

An application to turn an Edwardian building into 11 flats and build eight homes in its garden has been rejected.

Part of the former St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School site in Chatham, Kent, was the subject of a planning application to create a mixture of one and two-bed flats, and eight three-bed houses towards the back of the plot on Maidstone Road.

But the application has been rejected by planning officers on the grounds that the eight houses represented an over-development of the site, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Officers also raised concerns that the entire application failed to "adequately address the impact of the development on heritage assets".

In a report from Medway Council on 9 June, officers said plans "would result in a cramped over-development of the site, with poor living conditions for future occupants and harmful to the site and its surroundings including the conservation area".

In relation to the historic elements, officers say although the plans protect the exterior, they represent a significant internal change, including the removal of the main staircase, which would harm its historic significance.

Officers also said building eight homes on what were the gardens of the house showed no recognition of their historical importance.

Almost all of the former gardens would be needed to be built upon for the homes and associated infrastructure, such as roads and parking spaces, the report added.

Letters objecting to the plans raised concerns about the impact on the building, the new homes being overcrowded and out of keeping with the area, and the impact of new residents on local amenities and the road network.

The Victorian Society also objected, saying the plans would likely mean the loss of historical elements inside the house and negatively impact the Maidstone Road Conservation Area.

The report said: "Whilst no overriding objection in raised in principle to the reuse and possible development of the rear of the site for residential purposes, the current submission is not acceptable."

The rest of the site, where there are more modern school buildings, is the subject of another, separate application for an Aldi supermarket which was submitted in June.