Central Bedfordshire Council news and press releases

Have your say to unlock the future potential of Sandye Place Academy

Friday, 17 September 2021

Residents are being invited to have their say on the future of Sandye Place Academy during a six-week consultation, launched today (17 September 2021).

Sandye Place Academy is no longer needed as a school. The other schools in the area provide enough school places to meet the current and future demand. However, at the moment the school can only be used for educational purposes.

Sandye Place Academy has sat empty and unused since it closed in 2019 and we would like to unlock its future potential so it can remain an important community facility for the future.

We will apply to the Secretary of State for Education for permission for the site, including its buildings and playing fields, to be released from its educational status.  The current consultation is part of this process. The responses received in the consultation will be collated and provided to the Secretary of State before a decision is made.

If we are successful in its application to remove the educational status of the site, there will be further opportunities for the local community to discuss how the site could be used longer- term.

Executive Member for Housing & Assets, Councillor Eugene Ghent said:

Sandye Place Academy has always been an important and cherished community asset and despite no longer being required for educational use, we want it to remain as a facility that will serve the needs of Sandy now and in the future.

I would like to make it clear that no decisions have been made about the long-term future of the site. Some parts of the site are listed, in a conservation area, designated as ‘important open space’ and some parts will have historical importance to the community too. This will all need to be considered when we explore, with the community, ideas for what the site could be used for.

Have your say on Sandye Place Academy.

The consultation is open for six weeks, closing on 29 October 2021.