Breaking News on the future of Arborfield

following our visit to an exhibition in Arborfield please click here http://www.arborfieldoldboys.co.uk/arborfieldNewTown.pdfto download a copy of the proposal for Phase 1 and 2. of the Arborfield New Development.

Additionally you can see this at their own website http://dataroom.gvagrimley.co.uk/arborfield/index.htm.

To summarise the plan - Phase 1 ( build programme 2012 - 2015) called for some 500 houses, shops, district centre and secondary school in an area encompassing Rowcroft Barracks; if you click here http://www.arborfieldoldboys.co.uk/NewSchool.jpg you will see an area I have outlined in Yellow - this roughly represents  the perimeter of our Boys' School. Inside it you will see the planners propose to build a new secondary school, which for my money couldn't be a better use of the land given the history of education carried out there in the past.

The area we know as the gates/garden of remembrance is planned for a District Centre with a small garden and some kind of historic statement. We spoke to the planners and they are interested in incorporating both our gates,garden and trees in those plans if possible.

The area we know as the camp hall and playing fields are to be turned into shops including a supermarket, whilst the area to the north of Nuffield Road, which housed our Company offices, NAFFI /WVS, Education block etc will become houses.

But under the proposal the majority of the land we know (spiders - square - cook-house - Junior Company block - trade training hangers) will be used to educate our young people, which I suggest is truly a fitting use of the land. As an aside and in the fullness of time it might be appropriate for us to make contact with the school and support them in some way.

Anyway I do believe we should continue our dialogue with the planners and to this end I will be contacting them without delay so we might have a voice in the designing of the District Centre. I urge you to do so as well, making sure you identify yourself as an Arborfield Old Boy. They were very pleased to hear our thoughts of the use of our old school and echoed our desire to see the educational use continued. You can email them at consult.arborfield@gvagrimley.co.uk

Phase 2 (Build Programme 2015 - 2026) calls for the development of Hazebrouck Barracks area which would include Bill's Museum.

Some of these dates are at variance to those discussed at the meeting - but only a year or so - I think they said Phase 1 might finished by 2014 - but of course as in all things these timings might slip.

Of importance to us, I believe, is our 2011 reunion will be the last in Rowcroft, but with luck we should steal a few more years across the road in Hazebrouck.

So, assuming the planning goes through we now know a bit more about the future of our Arborfield, and can plan our reunions etc accordingly. I shall be posting this information where ever I can - together with a plea for all our membership to contact the planners regarding both the use of the land - plus our desire to see our treasured Gates, Garden and Trees preserved.

Arborfield Old Boys' Association