A bird’s eye view of plans to transform Parliament Hill and William Ellis schools as part of a £22million project have been unveiled for the first time this week.
The schools in Highgate Road will undergo extensive refurbishment because of the “poor condition” of many of their buildings, Camden Council has said.
Under preliminary proposals, the all-girls Parliament Hill will see several of its old buildings demolished to make way for a large, curved contemporary teaching block and a new building in front of the existing main building.
As well as teaching rooms, the proposed block will house a sixth-form centre for students at La Swap consortium, which is made up of Acland Burghley School, La Sainte Union, Parliament Hill and William Ellis.
Although the sixth-form facility will be on the Parliament Hill School site, students from the three other schools in the consortium will be able to use the communal space.
Camden cabinet member for children, Cllr Angela Mason, said: “Both schools lost out when the government axed the school building programme, but I am determined to ensure that local residents and the community are happy with the plans.
“As both the cabinet member for schools – and a new resident in Swain’s Lane, Highgate – I want this project to be something that both the schools and the local community can be proud of.”
The council is committed to pouring £19million into Parliament Hill School as part of its community investment programme, a 15-year plan to invest in schools, homes and community buildings.
It will also invest £3million in boys’ school William Ellis, which will see many of its classrooms refurbished.
Designs for the exterior of the schools, unveiled at a public consultation last Wednesday, are in their earliest stages and will be shaped by feedback received from parents, students, teachers and residents.
The schools will now work with the council to come up with interior designs to create more space and improve facilities.
The council hopes green roofs, which improve insulation, and other sustainable features will reduce carbon emissions and contribute to the local authority’s target of reducing emissions by 40 per cent by 2020.
A spokesman said that while feedback at the consultation, held at Parliament Hill School, was generally positive, some issues concerning car parking, the preservation of views, current trees on the site, and the design of the new buildings were raised.
A meeting to discuss any concerns will be held with Dartmouth Park residents who live in Lissenden Gardens, Dartmouth Park Hill and Grove Terrace in the coming weeks.
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