HRH The Earl of Wessex opens Macclesfield Learning Zone – new Walsingham Planning Director provides planning lead

Macclesfield Learning Zone (MLZ) is a collaborative partnership between local High Schools, Park Lane Special School and Macclesfield College to transform education and training in Macclesfield and the surrounding area.

At the heart of the Learning Zone is a state of the art campus on Park Lane, Macclesfield, which provides world class education and training facilities for the whole community. The campus is shared by Macclesfield College, Macclesfield High School and Park Lane Special School and provides a seamless integrated development.

Since 2002 Mark Krassowski has provided strategic planning advice for Macclesfield College and Cheshire County Council from initial feasibility into development options, including the potential for smaller scale improvements to the existing College campus, to moving the College and schools to another site in Macclesfield.

Once the in-principle decision was taken to create the Learning Zone on the site of the existing College and former Ryles Park High School, there was only a 30 month time period to get the development completed.

However there were substantial master planning, design, funding and strategic planning issues to address.

Mark sat on the Learning Zone Property Group and coordinated the planning approach both to the Park Lane site and other education sites, culminating in the submission in May 2004 of 6 planning applications to two separate planning authorities, all of which had to be considered and approved concurrently (including Section 106 agreements) if the overall programme was to be achieved.

One of the major challenges was to secure consent for residential and recreational uses on a surplus school site at Henbury, in order to meet the financial shortfall of the project after all other sources of funding had been exhausted.

The challenge was compounded by the housing restraint policies in place at the time, which meant that planning consent could only be granted in ‘exceptional circumstances’.

Mark Krassowski took the lead role in devising an ‘enabling development’ case which included providing detailed financial information to demonstrate that the residential proposals would only achieve the shortfall in funding and no more.

While complicated, the planning process was eased by thorough preparation and detailed consultation, including a series of public exhibitions. This was evidenced by the fact that it took less than 3 months to get all 6 planning applications determined.

Mark has continued to provide planning advice on the Learning Zone project during the construction process and was able to meet HRH The Earl of Wessex at the official opening ceremony in June 2008.