Fresh details have been revealed regarding plans to build a new outdoor education centre, college campus and community hub in Northwich.
The Petty Pool Trust’s current facility in Sandiway combines a vocational college for young people with a learning disability and an outdoor centre with on-site accommodation. The outdoor centre provides activities such as archery, abseiling and an orienteering course along with chalet-style accommodation.
The trust has has now submitted a planning application to bulldoze some of its existing buildings and construct a new residential outdoor centre, along with a new education campus to serve up to 160 young people.
There would also be a community hub offering a café, shop and multi-purpose space for sporting activity, arts and performance with an outdoor learning space.
If granted permission by Cheshire West and Chester Council, it would offer activities and cater for residentials for up to 60 schoolchildren at a time.
The trust anticipates more than 6,000 local school children per year, as well as people from other community groups and college learners, would benefit from the new centre.
A design and access statement issued in support of the scheme, said: “The main design objectives are to create inspiring educational spaces for pupils, staff and visitors to enjoy, providing important connections and integration with the surrounding woodland setting."
Offering an insight into what the eventual designs could look like, the statement said most of the buildings would use a high-quality timber cladding.
It added: "The setting for the outdoor centre is intended to be as sympathetic to the woodland surroundings as possible, including new tree and ground cover planting which will be protected and accessed via an adventure trail boardwalk which leads from the community hub and wider site, directly to the building."
Petty Pool is a registered charity that was first established as Mid Cheshire Sheltered Workshop in 1981.
More information can be found on the council's planning portal under the following application reference number: 23/03719/FUL.
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