Work begins on building a new Maria Fidelis School
The first stage of building a new, consolidated Maria Fidelis School has begun with the demolition of the former police garages at Drummond Crescent.
The consolidation of Maria Fidelis School onto one site, between Drummond Crescent and Phoenix Road in Somers Town, is a key mitigation secured in order to address the impacts of HS2-related construction works on the school’s current North Gower Street site.
Demolition works
The demolition of the garages is scheduled to be completed by October 2016. Works to demolish the garages can take place during standard working hours from 8am to 6pm from Monday to Friday, and between 8am and 1pm on Saturday, with breaks agreed during the school’s exam period to reduce the impact on the school. Special permission must be sought from Camden Council for any noisy activities outside these times.
During the demolition of the garages, site traffic will gain access via Doric Way into Drummond Crescent. The north footpath and the alleyway between Phoenix Road and Clarendon Grove will be closed for safety purposes during the demolition period.
Complex negotiations
The consolidation of the school on the Drummond Crescent site will allow the school to move away from the school site on North Gower Street to mitigate many of the construction impacts. This was made possible following complex negotiations involving Camden Council, the Trustees of Maria Fidelis School, the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and London and Continental Railways Ltd.
Assurances secured
As part of the assurances the Council received in December, the Secretary of State for Transport agreed to work with his counterpart in the Department for Education to minimise delays to the consolidation of the school and the impact of construction on the school while it remains in place. The mitigation measures secured could include double glazing, ventilation equipment and high hoardings. We are working with the school to push HS2 Ltd to ensure this happens and that the education of pupils is not negatively affected.
The consolidated school
A planning application for the consolidated school has now been received. You can view and comment on the application (application number 2016/3476/P) on our website until Thursday 21 July.
Following the demolition of the garages, the application proposes that the new school building, funded by the Department for Education, will be built in their place. The existing buildings on the Phoenix Road site would be demolished after the new building is complete, and replaced by sporting provision and landscaping.
More information
If you have any questions about these works, please contact the appointed principal demolition contractor Kier’s site management team on 07791 719 065 or 07810 658 106.
Camden Council remains opposed to plans for HS2 as currently proposed. If the government does go ahead with the scheme, Camden is committed to securing the best deal for our communities. Find out more on our HS2 webpages.