A little over a year ago I presented a petition to Brent Council, supported by Brent Friends of the Earth and Brent Parks Forum, calling for the continuation of primary environmental education provision at the new Post 16 Centre at the Welsh Harp. LINK
I am pleased to say that the planning application now on the Brent Council Planning Portal incorporates the recommendations we made.
Application Number: 26/2156 LINK
Location: Welsh Harp
Environmental Education Centre & open space, Birchen Grove, London, NW9 8RY Comments by
16th October 2026
“Demolition of all buildings
and construction of a one-storey education and community centre, including improvements to
access arrangements, provision of car and cycle parking, landscaping, play space, boundary
treatments and ancillary works.”
The proposed building is larger to make space for the SEND and the primary provision with separate classrooms and toilets as we requested. In order to keep it at single storey it occupies a bigger footprint than currently with the loss of some trees. The current classrooms that has a temoporary repait to allow classes to continue and the toilet block will be demolished. The chapel that was erected as part of a plan for proposed lawn cemetery on the site, but later abandoned will remain. it is currently let out by the council as Planet House,
Double classrooms in both the SEND and Primary sections of the building
Internal Images
EXTRACTS FROM PLANNING STATEMENT
The Site is located in the
administrative boundary of the London Borough of Brent (LBB).The Site measures
0.3 ha (hectares) in total.
The Site is comprised of two
existing buildings, the Welsh Harp Environmental Education Centre, and a W/C
block, both accessed off a private road (?), Birchen Grove. Hardstanding for
informal car parking is located to the east of the W/C block. Green open space,
including trees and grassed areas, are located to the west.
The Centre is currently used
for education and community purposes, providing support for schools via an
outdoor learning curriculum, providing experiential facilitated sessions. The
Centre is also available for hire by the local community primarily for
children’s birthday parties.
The Centre is currently
owned by Brent Council and operated by Thames 21. Thames 21 is an environmental
charity that works to clean and restore rivers and improve wildlife by
mobilising volunteers and engaging communities to help adapt to the impacts of
climate change. At Welsh Harp, Thames 21 provide a
large range of nature activities for Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and
Key Stage 2 (KS2) students. Currently over 70 schools work with Thames 21,
attending the Centre for outdoor learning and activities for either half or a full
day. Activities include habitat studies, water pollution studies, Stone Age
studies (fire lighting and shelter building), bushcraft activities and
understanding the role of nature and waterways in building climate resilience.
The Site is located in the
Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) and designated as Open Space, a Site of Importance
for Nature Conservation (SINC) and a local nature reserve in line with the
Brent Local Plan
Brent Council formally
committed to providing a Post-16 Skills Resource Centre in 2019, with approval
granted by Cabinet in November 2021 as part of the School Place Planning
Strategy 2024- 2028. The post-16 Skills Resource Centre is to be provided in
recognition of the lack of in-borough provision for young people with complex
learning difficulties, including those with Special Educational Needs and
Disabilities (SEND).
The Centre will provide
access to land-based education and training for students who may have completed
school or college programmes, but whose level of need means
that they require additional support to access the next step after formal education.
The Centre will offer training in horticulture, work experience, periods of
volunteering and employment and enterprise development within the horticultural
industry.
The Centre will be owned and
operated by Brent Council. Delivery of the Centre will be developed with
partners including environmental organisations, education providers, council
services, local employers and community groups. A number of the groups that
will utilise the centre have been consulted in the development of the designs
and proposals. Together, they will seek to create a joined-up pathway from
engagement to skills development, work experience, supported internships and,
where appropriate, sustained employment. The introduction of flexible space in
the form of the multi-purpose rooms will also provide other community groups
and members of the general public to use the centre, with benefit beyond the
core user group.
To provide a clear strategy
and operational plan of the centre, it is proposed to provide an Operation Management
Plan once details of delivery have been further developed. As the operational
delivery strategy for the centre is still under development, it will be more
effective to present the operational details at a later date. The Applicant is
willing to accept a suitable planning condition requiring an Operation Management Plan to
be submitted to and approved by the Council, prior to the centre’s Occupation.
The proposed single-storey
development comprises two rectangular blocks in a stepped configuration,
containing four classrooms, a multi-purpose room, WCs, reception, office, and
plant rooms. The layout provides distinct and separate spaces for different
users, with school-aged students located in the southwest section and
post-16 SEND students in the northwest section. Administration spaces,
including reception and office, are clustered around the reception area to the
building interior and the outdoor entrance area, enabling flexible use by
school-aged students, post-16 SEND users, or the local community. The design
ensures safeguarding between user groups, with shared spaces located centrally
while each distinct area has access to dedicated WCs and circulation space.
Access
The Site is accessed from
the south of the site via Birchen Grove. It is proposed to keep the existing access
road off Birchen Grove that runs adjacent to Planet House to the west. The
access road will provide a shared surface entrance to the drop-off area, the
accessible car parking bay and main entrance to the centre.
A new pathway will be
created off Birchen Grove adjacent to the existing zebra crossing which will allow
pedestrians to access the site to the school-aged student classrooms through
the secure fenceline, or alternatively via the main entrance on the southern
elevation. The pathway will also provide access to the cycle parking.
Trees
A total of 18 trees, in
addition to two groups of trees and a hedgerow, have been assessed as part of
the accompanying Tree Survey prepared by Arbtech. It states that the majority
of trees identified during the survey were of moderate quality.
The majority of the trees
will be retained as part of the proposals. Three trees are proposed to be removed,
in addition to one group of trees and the partial shrub clearance to the north
of the site boundary. This is to enable the space required for development to
construct the new centre. The layout of the proposals has
been designed so as to minimise tree loss as much as possible.
Thirteen trees are proposed
to be planted across the Site. Five trees will be added to the trees clustered
towards the south of the Site adjacent to Birchen Grove (namely T04 and T07)
and around the new parking area. The additional planting in this area will help
shield the proposed building when viewing the Site from the south along Birchen
Grove.
