AIBU to think this victorian school building shouldn't be demolished.....

[tangogal]

....just because it is not "energy efficient"?

Please see this petition link with a view to signing:
Thanks in advance!

you.38degrees.org.uk/p/Marlborough

Why can't they update the interior walls and add insulation and solar panels etc etc make do and mend not make a mountain out of a molehill

Is the building fully accessible?

convert it to flats get the kids a nice new school.

school in a victorian building near me is listed. they cannot accept pupils with limited mobility as no lift, and no where to put one.
assembly hall is upstairs, 12 steep steps up to 'ground' floor.

a newbuilt can be so much better for both pupils and staff.

What a fabulous building Signed.

The new school will provide more places, and also a unit for autistic children, plus affordable housing.
Sorry, but that trumps the historical aspect for me, given the huge shortage of all of those things at the moment...

Agree sparechange. Practicality over heritage.

Why can't they update the interior walls and add insulation and solar panels etc etc make do and mend not make a mountain out of a molehill

if it could be easily done, then it would.

I wouldn't want my child to go to a damp cold school. Flats or flatten it.

I quite like the building, but some of the ugly listed monstrosities need to go.

But.....They are scrapping the council estate next to the school to make luxury apartments!!!!

www.standard.co.uk/news/london/tenants-condemn-social-cleansing-plans-of-chelsea-estate-10044844.html

And the affordable housing in the new school development is unlikely to be "affordable" by most, it rarely is in Ken & Chelsea.

The autism centre will be great, but could be incorporated in the old building.

Just had a quick look at the pic of the building on the petition and at first pass i would say it would be a nightmare to try and refurb it. I can totally see how a new school would be preferable.

Renewable energy options would be very limited - the roof alone is so complex there doesn't appear to be a sizeable enough space for panels and that's before all the shading issues caused by the various turrets and penetrations.

hazeyjane, it is fully accessible to those in wheelchairs.

The plan for the new building looks completely characterless. The current building may not be practical for continued use as a school, but I'm sure that there is no reason whatsoever why it couldn't be converted into flats. I work near an old Victorian school building which has been converted for that purpose: it looks very good, and they have no problem whatsoever in selling the flats, mainly for pretty hefty prices, so clearly there aren't realistic concerns about heating, access etc.

yy I completely agree, build a nice, accessible, clean, efficient new school for the children, and turn this lovely building into flats.

Win win.

OP, you are getting your geography a bit mixed up.
The school and the council estate are several streets apart. The two aren't connected.
The council estate is in bad nick and needs money spending on it, but neither council nor the housing association have any money to spend. So they are knocking it down and rebuilding it, with some flats being sold off to cover the costs of the build, and the HA tenants rehoused in the new flats.

In the grand scheme of the beautiful red brick victorian architecture of those streets, the school is pretty unremarkable. Yes, it would be nice if it could be kept, but the need to expand the school and make the additional provisions is greater in my opinion

I've lived near this school and estate all my life, there is literally one street connecting them (Petyward) as the school main entrance is on Sloane Ave and the estate on Elystan Street and many of the pupils live on that estate.
The new school could stay on the clearings site, why bother to go back and forth, and the school become flats as some MNers have just said.
Again, thanks to those who signed, it hasn't gone unnoticed!

My beautiful Victorian primary school building was demolished about 19 years ago to make way for crappy new houses with teeny gardens.

It's bloody awful :(

So, looking at the planning application, the applicants are "John Lewis Plc together with Kensington & Chelsea Council" so how could there ever have been a fair outcome? How is it possible that the council can apply to the council?
If you disagree with this process, please add your signature to the petition and thanks to those who have made a big difference already to the numbers...

That was the first school I taught in and the building was lovely. It is full of character - large classrooms, plenty of light and the school is huge.

In my day the children rattled around - class sizes of 18 -25 with a huge range of nationalities and languages. It was a lovely school (except for the head). I feel quite sad that it may be torn down.