St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, in St Marys Lane, has applied to Havering Council for planning permission to undertake the works.
According to the application, the principal aim of the plan is to “improve safe pedestrian access to the main reception and to address the lack of car parking provision”.
The school’s car park provides up to ten parking spaces, but it wishes to up this “generally limited” number to 13 spaces along with electric vehicle charging points.
To do so, the school proposes to replace the plastic paving grids, concrete paving and green border with porous block paving to match the paving to the rest of the existing car park.
The school has advised it cannot improve the car park outside of the existing boundary as to do so would mean “encroaching onto essential playground space”.
Pedestrian access to St Joseph’s is through the same entrance as the car park to reach the main reception, with no designated walkway and no barrier to safely separate the spaces.
This has been referred to as a “primary health and safety concern for the school” in documents accompanying the proposal.
Plans to address the concern include the installation of new twin bar mesh security fences and gates separating the car park and walkway.
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A small section of wall is planned to be removed to improve vehicle access to the site as well as existing cherry trees and shrubs.
A new drainage system and electrical ducting would also need to be installed.
If approved, the works would begin in July this year and complete the following month.
