Saddleworth school plan comes closer

The pallet works site

DISAPPOINTED residents cried “shame” at Saddleworth Parish Council planning committee last night after the £19.2 million secondary school at Diggle was recommended for approval.

The 11-strong committee backed demolition of buildings at the former WH Shaw pallet works site off Huddersfield Road., and recommended approval for the 1,500-pupil school sports fields, pitches and parking.

But they recommended refusal for the application to provide a parental drop-off and residential car parking off Huddersfield Road, Diggle. All four applications had been recommended for refusal by the parish council’s conservation areas advisory committee at its meeting last month.

And at the start of the meeting at Uppermill civic hall, chairman Councillor Rob Knotts called the decision “one of the biggest the parish council and community have faced for many years.”

About 40 people put forward their views, with concerns about three recent “100-year event” floods in as many years on the fields that would become the school pitches

Others decried the loss of listed buildings, in particular the bridge attached to the works’ clock tower. The bridge will go, but the tower will remain.

Oldham Council is still talking to Heritage England to determine whether the building attached to the link bridge is also a “heritage asset”.

The committee voted 7-4 for the demolition of the bridge to be recommended for approval — subject to further information from Heritage England.

And councillors voted 10-1 to recommend approval of the application to demolish five existing buildings, including the water tower and chimney.

Councillors weren’t in favour of plans for a parental drop-off area and residential parking, highlighting safety concerns and lack of staff parking.

Seven councillors voted to recommend refusal of the application, while four abstained.

A final decision on the applications will be made by Oldham Council planning committee on February 25, whose decisions will need to be ratified at a subsequent Oldham Council meeting.