Biggin Hill's Spitfire Youth Centre is set to become the new home for combined Children and Family Centre services, following a decision by Bromley Council's Executive. The move aims to provide a more suitable and cost-effective location than the current site in Sunningvale Avenue.
The Executive met on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, and agreed to further develop proposals for co-locating these vital services at the Spitfire Youth Centre on Church Lane. This decision stems from an Extended Property Review that identified the Spitfire site as having greater value and requiring less financial investment for repairs compared to the Sunningvale Avenue facility.
The Spitfire Youth Centre site measures 300m², compared to the Sunningvale site of 230m². A suitable layout comprising internal adaptations, refurbishment, and an in-fill extension to create a new reception has been selected to deliver the requirements for both the Children & Family Centre and Youth Centre. The report highlights that the Spitfire Youth Centre site offers a larger site with more outdoor space, including areas for young people to play and a skatepark. The co-location is described as involving internal adaptations, refurbishment, and a small in-fill extension to the Spitfire Youth Centre building. The existing facilities, such as the skatepark and play area, are presented as benefits of the site for young people, with the report not indicating any negative impact on these existing youth facilities.
Concerns were raised about the feasibility of extending the Sunningvale Avenue site, with potential planning challenges including over-development, loss of amenity space, and negative impacts on neighbouring properties. Additionally, noise and late-hour vehicle activity from youth services operating at Sunningvale were anticipated to cause resident objections.
In contrast, the Spitfire Youth Centre, situated near the NHS Child Health Clinic and the High Street, offers a larger site with more outdoor space. The location of the Spitfire Youth Centre is close to the NHS Child Health Clinic and other local amenities, making it an ideal choice for families with children. The report does not explicitly detail changes to the range or accessibility of services offered to families, but implies an enhancement due to the improved location and facilities.
As part of the plan, the Sunningvale Avenue Children & Family Centre site is to be disposed of. Options for its use include affordable housing development or sale for a capital receipt. While this may not yield the initially anticipated larger capital sum, it is expected to result in overall savings on the Operational Property Review budget and revenue savings from declaring a property surplus. The specific financial figures for these savings are detailed in the Part 2 Report, which is not publicly available.
The report also acknowledged the potential displacement of The Sheds
community group and Honey's Nursery from the Spitfire Youth Centre site. Officers are committed to supporting The Sheds
community group in identifying another potential venue for their activities. For Honey's Nursery, the report notes that the Council understands they have recently bought a new property on Main Road, Biggin Hill, and have obtained planning consent to convert it into a new nursery, with conversion works commencing in June 2026. The report also suggests that should Honey's Nursery vacate their current building, The Sheds
could occupy the old Nursery building on a formal lease arrangement or source their own alternative accommodation. The full details of the council's decision can be found in the Decisions Wednesday 22-Jul-2026 19.00 Executive.pdf.
