£3.8m Lawley community centre plans submitted

Plans for a new £3.8 million community centre in Telford have been lodged with council planners.

Land near Lawley Village Primary Academy, in Bryce Way, Lawley, has been earmarked as the site for a two-storey parish community facility building with car parking.

Lawley & Overdale Parish Council decided to go ahead with submitting the plans at a meeting in October following a discussion of a consultation survey.

“Members felt that wherever a build takes place that there would, understandably, be concerns but it was clear from the comments in support and a growing population that a new centre was needed,” draft minutes of an extraordinary meeting on October 1 recorded.

“In addition, they referred to the low number of responses from those who did not want a new facility but could see the potential a new centre would provide, such as free activities for residents, educational and training opportunities as well as volunteering ones.”

The current Lawley Community Centre, in Arleston Lane, is in the former assembly hall of a Victorian school building.

But the meeting heard that more space is needed for activities for the local population, which has trebled from 5,000 to nearly 15,000 residents in 20 years.

Lawley and Overdale Parish Council has plans to increase its share of the council tax by around 44p per week on a Band D property to pay back Telford & Wrekin Council for a proposed 40-year loan at an annual fixed rate of £263,113 per annum.

The parish council would also sell its office in Lawley Square to contribute to the budget. It was valued at £150,000 in February 2021.

Parish councillors have been given the final analysis from a resident consultation, which also included suggestions for use, appearance, functionality and accessibility.

It received 199 responses from inside the parish area with 60.3 per cent in support.

Councillors had asked if other locations could be used and whether the current centre could be extended.

“The response from Telford & Wrekin Council was that there were no other viable locations and that the current centre was landlocked, preventing any expansion,” the draft minutes record.

Responding to other concerns councillors said it “would be a facility for the whole of the parish area and all residents, and it does not involve the stewardship provider for Lawley.

“The reports and surveys, part of the planning application process, should address concerns regarding parking, traffic, noise.

“The parish council holds the contract for the Neighbourhood Enforcement Officers, who are able to patrol.

“In addition, the new centre opening and closing times would be the same as to the current one, which was in a residential area, with little or no impact

“The use of schools and other TWC buildings would not provide the valuable access that is required during the day and evenings, as they too have limited availability due to safeguarding and pre-existing groups.

“The projected cost of the build is a forecast and does not include any grant funding which the parish council will access, which would reduce any increase, and the projected income for the new centre is conservative and likely to be higher based on the research undertaken.”

The application is currently undergoing a validation by the planning department at Telford & Wrekin Council. It is not yet open for public consultation.

Parish councillors have previously been told that if planning permission is granted, work could start on the site next year with the new community centre open in 2027.