Kingston upon Thames Council's Planning Committee has approved a retrospective application for play equipment at Burlington School, Burlington Road, New Malden, following concerns about its initial height and impact on neighbouring properties. The decision, made at a meeting on Wednesday 9 July 2025, comes after the school addressed the committee's worries by reducing the height of the climbing frame and agreeing to additional screening measures. The approval is subject to several conditions to ensure the development is appropriately managed.
The application, initially deferred at a meeting on 19 July 2023, sought permission for the erection of play equipment structures, resurfacing of a rubber crumb external surface, and a new woodworking shed. Objections had been raised regarding the impact on the area's character, excessive height, loss of privacy, noise, and pupil safeguarding.
To address these concerns, the applicant explored options for re-siting the play equipment. The climbing frame has been repositioned further away from the site boundary, now sitting 5.1m from the boundary compared to its previous position of approximately 1.4m. Additionally, the 'leaf' canopy was removed, reducing the total height of the climbing frame from 3.8m to 2.6m.
According to the Public reports pack Wednesday 09-Jul-2025 19.30 Planning Committee, photos of the play area before the new surfacing and equipment were installed showed two existing trees within the hard surfacing. These trees have been retained with the replacement rubber crumb surfacing similarly surrounding them.
Concerns were also raised about potential noise and disturbance to neighbouring properties, as well as pupil safeguarding. To mitigate noise, the committee mandated a condition for acoustic screening along the northern boundary. The Combined Report PLANNING COMMITTEE 09.07.2025 stated that officers had no reason to doubt the school's existing child safeguarding measures.
In addition to the play equipment, a new woodworking shed is proposed to the north-east of the site, adjacent to the boundary with properties on Beverley Road. The proposed shed is approximately 2.5m in height with a footprint of 4.5m x 7.5m (33.75 sqm Gross External Area).
The Planning Committee has agreed to approve the application subject to conditions. These include maintaining the development in accordance with the approved plans, restricting the use of the flat roof area, and commencing the development within three years. Authority has been delegated to the Assistant Director of Strategic Planning and Infrastructure to finalise the conditions in consultation with the Chair of the Planning Committee, Councillor Mark Beynon.
One condition requires details of acoustic and visual screening to the northern boundary of the play area to be submitted within 2 months of the date of permission. The specific materials for the screening are yet to be determined, but the details must be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The screening shall be implemented as approved and permanently retained thereafter, in the interests of the amenity of neighbouring properties.