A row has broken out over a RAAC school rebuild in Durham, only weeks after the demolition began.

Public comments have been lodged against the redevelopment of St Leonard’s School, in Durham City’s North End.

Nearby residents have said that the proposed rebuild “fails to meet” Durham County Council’s policy on new buildings and have raised objections to the planning officer about the uprooting of protected trees, privacy concerns, and constriction traffic on their quiet streets.

The school rebuild has been necessitated by the RAAC crisis – where ageing crumbling concrete posed a safety threat in classrooms, leading to them being only one of two secondary schools completely closed last September.

Parents and students have been lobbing the government for exam mitigations at St Leonard's. (Image: The Northern Echo) 

Mary Kelly Foy, who is hoping to be reelected at Durham City MP in the General Election, previously said that the school rebuild was “expedited” as part of the government’s School Rebuild program, due to the severity of St Leonard’s RAAC problem.

But unhappy local residents have raised concerns about some parts of the rebuild, saying if approved, it could set a “dangerous precedent”, and cause “long-lasting and adverse impacts” on the neighbourhood.

Rachel Johnson, who lives locally, submitted an objection to the application, saying: “The North End area of Durham has always been a sought-after area to live with traditional and well-kept houses. The current school was always set back from the road and not an overbearing building.

“The new design appears to be closer to the residential street and also higher than the old school; its height, size and change to position appear overbearing and not in keeping with the current street-scape and surrounding area.

“Part of our North End area is a Conservation Area with Flass Vale woods in close proximity. I know when I had planning permission submitted, I had to take this into consideration on the application yet it appears in the case of the planning for St Leonard's School development there is no mention of how they plan to offset the additional pollution, noise and disruption to the local area not only during the construction period, but also with everyday usage.

“The damage is likely to be long-lasting with irreversible adverse effects.”

Jonny Callan added his own objection to the application, saying: “To allow this application to be approved in its present form and unamended would cause irreversible damage to this school in terms of its setting in a Conservation Area as well as the long-lasting and adverse impact on the neighbourhood of North End.

“It further sets a dangerous precedent in Durham County that such developments will be approved in the future, despite legislation in place to prevent this.

“The impact of such a precedent could be felt by many residents across the county and the council should consider the impact of approving this planning permission, in the light of any possible and future applications.”

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A local resident, who preferred to remain anonymous, said: “The size of the building, although stated a three storey, is comparable to a five-storey building.

“The poor design of the building which will result in an ugly monolith of a building that will not be in harmony with the conservation area. Increased traffic which is currently best described as congested and chaotic.”

But a mum of students at St Leonard's also commented on the planning application, saying she was supportive of the school rebuild happening "as speedily as possible," following the huge disruption faced by pupils this year.  

Mum Kathryn said: "As you are aware, the school was forced to close at the beginning of September 2023, and this has had a significant impact on education, with significant anxiety and many challenges for the school and children due to the drastic changes in teaching and learning settings and other arrangements. A long term solution is urgently required.

"Having reviewed the proposed plans in detail, they will provide modern and safe learning environment.

"There are substantial public benefits associated with this for for current and further generations. While neighbouring resident concerns are noted, there are suitable landscaping conditions that could be implemented to ensure that there are no unacceptable impacts.

"It is also noted that there are no objections from council consultees for design, conservation, highways and ecology. It is therefore requested that the application is approved as soon as possible."

St Leonard’s School has applied to demolish existing school buildings and development of a replacement school building and works to the retained Springwell Hall, along with car parking, hard and soft landscaping including works to trees, replacement playing pitches, and access arrangements. The deadline for a determination to be made on the application is Friday, July 12.