New school plan 'too boring'
Published: 2010-02-09 10:12:08
A new school for troubled youngsters has hit a setback - after councillors threw out the plans for being too boring.
Liberal Democrat controlled Islington Council wanted to pull down the pupil referral unit in Lough Road, Holloway - a striking four-storey Victorian building - and replace it with a modern three-storey brick affair. The council's Labour-dominated west area planning committee last week refused to grant permission. (Sourced from Islington Gazzette.)
Councillor Paul Convery, who chaired the committee, said: "This is an exceptionally uninspiring building that might only last 20 to 25 years - and we want to tear down a building that has stood for 120 years and is in immaculate condition."
The committee suggested the building be converted into housing and the unit be built elsewhere.
But Islington education chiefs said there were no other sites available - and warned that delays may result in the authority losing government funding.
The application was refused on the grounds of unsatisfactory design quality, loss of an existing building of character, and failure to maximise the potential of the site.
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