Oppose Change of Use of The Studios at Cambridge Road, Hanwell W7

The Studios in Cambridge Road, Hanwell W7 3PA (known as Marall Smith Film & Video Productions), comprise an office building currently categorised for use as financial and professional services or business use.

The application for change of use to D1 (non-residential institutions) is the necessary preamble in order to locate an integrated Drug and Alcohol Service to be run by Rise (Recovery Intervention Service Ealing) on these premises. The proposed hours of operation would be Monday to Friday 8.00am-8.00pm and Saturday 8.00am-6.00pm.

Contrary to the misleading statement in the applicant’s Design and Access Statement (a required decision-making tool in the planning process), this building is NOT surrounded by other commercial premises and close the Town Centre. Whilst there is a former pub, now a tool hire business, at the junction of Cambridge Road with Boston Road, and new office premises as part of the Cambridge Yard development on the other side, Cambridge Road, and associated Edinburgh, Montague and Deans Roads, and Dene Court comprise predominantly residential, family housing.

In addition, the Studios are fifteen paces away from the main entrance to a newly completed development of 130 homes in Cambridge Yard which backs onto the site. When the Cambridge Yard development was approved in 2007 it was anticipated that it (alone) would yield 25 primary age pupils and 13 high school age pupils.

The Studios are close to Oaklands Primary School, the rear entrance to which is in Deans Road, accessible via Cambridge Road. It is on the safe ‘walk to school route’ for parents and children at Oaklands Primary School, St Mark’s Primary School, St Joseph’s RC Primary School, and for secondary school students at Elthorne Park High School. The proposed non-residential institution would be in operation at both the start and end of the school day.

The Studios do not have an associated garden or other green amenity space and it is not intended to provide them with any. So users and staff of the Service would not have any open space and fresh air immediately associated with the building for relaxing or smoking breaks. There is no indication of provision for smokers in the written materials provided, so it may be that smokers would have to huddle around the front door of the offices on Cambridge Road itself.

The Public Transport Accessibility Level (PTAL) score has not been given. However, there is no bus route directly outside the premises and there are only two buses servicing Boston Road; the 195 from Hayes to Brentford County Court and E8 from Ealing Broadway Station to Brentford Bus Garage. Boston Manor tube station is a bus ride away, and the Uxbridge Road with its several bus routes is a significant walk away. If this centre is intended to service the Borough, the transport accessibility is poor.

The application indicates that there would be 20 full time and 10 part time members of staff. But there is no indication of how many clients would be expected to visit the centre each day, in other words how many people this service would have the capacity to help on a daily or weekly basis.

Yet there is only onsite parking for five cars. The design and access statement says that there is sufficient additional parking in the local area and that staff and clients would be encouraged to use public transport and local car parks. There is, however, little available street parking in adjoining streets with residents finding that parking spaces are at a premium; locals visiting the Royal Mail Sorting Office in Edinburgh Road, between 06.00-12.00 Monday to Saturday, already find it very difficult to park. The nearest public car parks are in George Street which is 6 minutes’ walk away and Lidl’s car park where there are parking restrictions. We do not believe that there would be adequate parking for this facility, and believe that the design and access statement is misleading.

Whilst there is clearly a need for Drug and Alcohol Recovery Services in Ealing and Hanwell, we do not believe that this building is suitable to house the Service on the grounds of its location in a predominantly residential area, its proximity to three primary schools and one secondary school, its lack of access to associated outdoor amenity space, limited public transport accessibility and poor parking provision.

We do not believe that it is compatible with Ealing Council’s vision as “Creating a great place for every child and young person to grow up” to position the Drug and Alcohol Recovery Service in this predominantly residential area close to schools.

Full details of the application and plans can be found on Ealing Council’s planning pages at http://www.pam.ealing.gov.uk/portal/servlets/ApplicationSearchServlet keying in the planning reference number: PP/2012/5279.