A councillor has submitted a formal support letter for the redevelopment of the Wishawhill Community Centre into a new nursery.
Motherwell South East and Ravenscraig elected member Nathan Wilson has given his seal of approval to the specific plans submitted to refurbish and extend the community centre.
And he said the submission of the planning application is a boost towards the proposals for enhanced nursery capacity in Wishawhill becoming a reality in future.
The only question marks raised by Councillor Wilson about the planning application relates to whether more parking bays than the 13 included in the proposals can be provided for parents and staff.
The planning application was formally submitted in July.
The refurbishment of the Wishawhill facility into the Heathery Park Family Learning Centre will make available space for 40 FTE nursery provision for three to five-year-olds and eligible kids aged two.
The plans to improve nursery capacity for families living in Wishawhill as part of the 1140 initiative ran into difficulty after it transpired that the first site chosen for the project at Heathery Park was unsuitable for the development because of on-site drainage problems.
Councillor Wilson said: “Previous reports on the 1140 nursery expansion brought to the council’s Education and Families Committee have highlighted that Wishawhill is behind the other new early years centre projects and this has remained a source of concern.
“The submission of the planning application is a positive step in the right direction and represents strong progress in taking forward the plans to ensure local families in Wishawhill can have access to a new high-quality nursery on their doorstep.
“Whilst it is welcome that car parking arrangements for the proposed new early years centre is included, I would question whether a total of 13 spaces is the optimum number that can be provided.
“From the land marked as being within the council’s ownership in the planning documents submitted for the new parking facility on Main Street, it looks to me that a number of additional spaces could possibly be added at each side towards the end of the car park.
“A first-rate nursery education is essential for the future of our children and I hope that the plans to establish the Heathery Park Family Learning Centre can be approved as soon as possible.”
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