PLANS have been approved to transform the Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Peace Centre in Warrington into a Special Educational Needs centre for students aged 16 and above at a cost of £9 million.
The matter was discussed by councillors as part of the site in Great Sankey is owned by the borough council.
The building on the corner of Sankey Way will be refurbished with the original cedar cladding replaced with new glass fibre cladding and an extension built.
It will provide Special Educational Needs education for students for those post-16 and post-19 in Warrington.
After consulting with residents, the committee was told one letter of objection was received in connection with concerns over parking.
There are no adjacent residential properties near the centre, councillors were told.
The application will result in the loss of an existing basketball court to facilitate the plans, but Sport England had not objected, the committee heard on Thursday night.
Councillors heard there would be “some disruption to existing bats but there will be no long-term harm to their conservation status.”
Speaking in support of the application, Louise Atkin, deputy director of education and inclusion at Warrington Borough Council, said aside from a couple of offices “the building is no longer in use to the extent it was built for.”
“At its peak this building, delivered events for young people and families on site and we have an opportunity to accommodate young people of Warrington again.”
She explained there were 2,177 young people on Educational Health Care plans in Warrington and this had increased by 9% in 2023.
Of these, 468 were aged 16 to 19 and 167 were 20 to 25. Currently, 106 young people were placed out of the Borough.
She said the sixth form at Woolston Learning Centre would move into the new building.
Initially, the building would house 60 students.
The new building will include classrooms, multi-purpose spaces and ancillary facilities.
An all-weather walking track will be created along with a horticultural learning area, playground, car parking for minibuses and pickup/drop off spaces.
The Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Peace Foundation will occupy space within the building for offices and a multi-use space for occasional activities.
The proposal was unanimously passed by the Development Management Committee.
