Why the 29th April vote matters for Burnham’s future School

It has been some time since we last advised as to progress with the Save Our School (SOS) campaign.

Our silence does not reflect the continued efforts being made to convince Bucks County Council that a serious and relevant investigation needs to be undertaken with regard to this matter.

In addition, the potential development at Hitcham (circa 800 homes) and the major housing developments in the Maidenhead area add significant weight to the re-establishment of a Non-Selective Secondary School in the Burnham Community.

On Wednesday April 29th your support and active involvement is NOW required.

29th April is the day on which you can vote and support Burnham Parish Council in securing approval for the Burnham Neighbourhood Plan.

You can find the plan here: Neighbourhood Plan submission for anyone who wishes to find out more, a QA session is being held on Monday 20th April, 6:30pm, at Burnham Park Hall.

The plan is an extensive document but of keynote is its support and endorsement of maintaining and re-opening a Secondary School in Burnham. Confirmation of this can clearly be seen in two extracts from the Neighbourhood Plan as shown below.

(Note – Burnham Park Academy was the name of the school before it was closed).

2.9. Burnham Park Academy previously operated in the parish but was closed in 2019. The site is currently being used for filming purposes and is maintained by Buckinghamshire Council; but contains important community assets, including a sports hall paid for by the community and extensive playing fields, which are not currently being utilised for community benefit. A number of young people from the parish currently have to attend schools outside of the Parish; reinstituting non-selective secondary provision within the Parish is a very high priority for the local community. Whilst the Neighbourhood Plan cannot directly deliver a new school, it is seeking to retain the use of the site.

5.28. Whilst it is acknowledged that the Neighbourhood Plan cannot directly deliver the re-opening of Burnham Park Academy, it is seeking to retain the existing use of the site to reflect the wishes of the community. Even if current evidence shows insufficient demand for a new secondary school in Burnham at this time, which is disputed particularly given such a school would draw from surrounding council areas as well as Buckinghamshire, the Parish Council maintains the position that its location is so significant that, should it be required within the plan period (2045), the site ought to be safeguarded for the future. There is no alternative suitable site that would be equally integrated into the community and sustainable, especially from a transport perspective. This is particularly pertinent looking into the future, given the recent increase in Buckinghamshire Council’s updated housing requirement figure; and that the current figures for school demand consider only births taken place and therefore do not go beyond the mid 2030s in terms of demand. In policy terms, the BURNP can continue to be safeguarded as a school (the last established use was F1) and there have been no applications to change the use since its closure.

It is important to advise that the Neighbourhood plan cannot deliver a new school by itself, nor can it guarantee that Bucks do not try to sell the site. However, it does lend support to the cause and make selling the site more difficult.

As such, your vote in support of the Neighbourhood Plan is a vital step in supporting the Save Our School campaign.

Please take time out to vote and add your voice to the re-establishment of a Secondary School in Burnham.

Thank you,

Save Our School Committee