Councillors unhappy after Cramlington Learning Village work starts without planning permission

The plans were approved by a committee on Wednesday – but members were unhappy that work had already started before they had been given the opportunity to scrutinise the plans.

The work has seen a temporary single story double classroom installed at Cramlington Learning Village, with the extra capacity for year seven pupils needed while work to construct a new school is ongoing.

Speaking at Wednesday’s meeting of the Cramlington, Bedlington and Seaton Valley Local Area Committee, Cllr Malcom Robinson voiced his annoyance at the move.

He said: “There is a problem with the system here somewhere – this is the second school that has done it. I’m used to developers riding roughshod over the planning department but it’s bad when the education department is doing it as well.

“I’m going to abstain because I want to send them a message. We want the best schools we can for our kids, and if they need to do this fine – but there’s a system to use and if we’re going to throw the system away it becomes a free-for-all.”

Cramlington North councillor Wayne Daley agreed with Cllr Robinson’s concerns but said he would be voting for the application.

He explained: “It is retrospective and I think we’re all a bit narked about that – but if this was coming to me fresh, there might be a few amendments, but I can’t see any material reason to refuse this.

“At the end of the day if we reject this what do we do? What happens to those pupils in year seven? It is a blip.

“Somewhere in the great big sausage machine that is the council, information has not been shared between education and planning.

“I feel sorry for (the council planners) – there is nothing worse than presenting a retrospective application to councillors, because we get really upset about it.

“Let’s try and tidy up that relationship between planning and other departments and make this the last one we have to do like this.”

The plans were approved by the committee, with all but one councillor voting to grant permission. As promised, Cllr Robinson chose to abstain.