Re-use of Education Playing Field Land (Section 77) - Part of the Fakenham Old College Site, Wells Road, Fakenham

Overview

Norfolk County Council proposes to re-use 22,240m squared (5.5 acres) of playing field on the Fakenham Old College Site, Wells Road, Fakenham,
NR21 9H under Section 77 of the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998.

Before we can re-use this playing field it will be necessary for Norfolk County Council to apply for written consent from the Secretary of State. It is only at that point that we may be able to change the use of this land.

Should approval be given by the Secretary of State, it would enable Norfolk County Council to move ahead with its plans to build a new specialist school for up to 100 children and young people with autism in north Norfolk, subject to planning and other approvals.

This plan is part of Norfolk County Council's £120m programme to transform special needs education in the county.

The playing fields have not been used by a school or any community group for approximately 20 years. Although the fields are not being used,
Norfolk County Council continues to maintain them and there are ongoing costs for the upkeep of these fields.

We are consulting all interested parties on this proposed re-use of land, particularly community groups, local schools, local sports clubs, residents and businesses in the area.

Why your views matter

We want to find out what people think about this proposal. We are consulting through:

• This online consultation, which is also available as a paper copy
• Letter to local schools, community groups and other key stakeholders

We are consulting from 13th December 2019 to 24th January 2020. Please note that if we receive any consultation responses after this date we cannot guarantee that we will be able to take them into account.

We will feed back the findings from our consultation to the Secretary of State as part of the evidence they will use to help them come to a decision about our proposals. If you need a copy of this consultation document in paper or in a different format please email: schoolreview@norfolk.gov.uk

What happens next

All the feedback we receive during the consultation will be forwarded to
the Secretary of State who will make a decision on the future of the field.