Here's how you can have your say about the future of the Sandye Place Academy site - as consultation begins

Wheels are in motion to transform Sandye Place Academy as Central Bedfordshire Council launches a consultation about the site's future.

The former school has sat empty and unused since it closed in 2019 and CBC would like to "unlock its future potential" so it can remain an important community facility.

The decision to shut the school was taken by the Department for Education in 2018, after the council had recommended it for closure.

A Central Bedfordshire Council spokeswoman said: "Sandye Place Academy is no longer needed as a school. The other schools in the area provide enough school places to meet the current and future demand. However, at the moment the school can only be used for educational purposes.

"The council will apply to the Secretary of State for Education for permission for the site, including its buildings and playing fields, to be released from its educational status."

The current consultation is part of this process and the responses will be collated and provided to the Secretary of State before a decision is made.

If the council is successful in its application to remove the educational status of the site, there will be further opportunities for the local community to discuss how the site could be

used longer-term.

Executive Member for Housing and Assets, Councillor Eugene Ghent, said: “Sandye Place Academy has always been an important and cherished community asset and despite no

longer being required for educational use, we want it to remain as a facility that will serve the needs of Sandy now and in the future.

“I would like to make it clear that no decisions have been made about the long-term future of the site. Some parts of the site are listed, in a conservation area, designated as ‘important open space’ and some parts will have historical importance to the community too.

"This will all need to be considered when we explore, with the community, ideas for what the site could be used for.”

The consultation is open for six weeks, closing on Friday, October 29, and is available on the council’s website. Paper copies can be made available to view at Sandy Town Council and

Sandy Library as well as requests via email to consultations@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.

Visit: https://www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/info/27/about_your_council/188/consultations