De-coding Turing House School, a placemaking opportunity?

Turing House a new Academy funded school in the Borough of Richmond has seen at the formal decision to proceed with its permanent site at Hospital Bridge Road given on the 23^rd April 2020. However, the constructors have not been able to make a start as they wished due to the COVID -19 impact. The ambitious plans for the new school will use former open agricultural land which borders a railway line to the north and cemetery to the west.

Turing House School was established in 2011 as an Academy and named after the famous WW2 Codebreaker who resided in Teddington whilst developing early computing at the National Physics Laboratory. The School has quickly established itself using temporary sites in Teddington at Livingston House and Hampton, Clarendon School. The new permanent school will house 750 children and 300 sixth formers and is expected to be ready in 2021/22.

Whilst there was some initial opposition to the location of the school in the Heathfield District the council had considered and ruled out many other local possibilities including the NPL, David Lloyd and Udney Park. The School will be a great bonus to the local area, including the creation of open public space and sports facilities. Examples of Schools that play a key role in placemaking can be found at Eddington, Cambridge, and Alconbury Weald in Hampshire

Susan Emmett in the Savills Report on Placemaking (2016) said, “ Schools attract potential buyers and increase footfall supporting shops.”

When the school is completed, the temporary sites will be vacated creating more opportunities in the Richmond Borough.