Conditional approval for 22 homes

Developers get consent for old school site plans

Conditional approval has been granted for more than 20 new council homes on the site of a former Cowie school.

Stirling Council planners have granted consent for the authority to build 22 new builds on the old St Margaret’s Primary School plot.

The old school closed in 2016, the same year a new St Margaret’s Primary building opened elsewhere in the village.

Since then the original building has been demolished and the site cleared.

The proposals include a mixture of one-, two- and three-bedroom homes to suit a variety of needs, from single people to families, as well as some fully accessible properties.

There will be a oneway system around the development and most of the properties will overlook a central landscaped space with community seating.

In supporting documents for their application, council housing officials had said: “The Housing Need Analysis for the area indicates a demand for one-bedroom properties and a wheelchair property, therefore we have provided a mix of onebedroom and two-bedroom general housing, two- and three-bed family housing, as well as a one-bed and a three-bed fully accessible wheelchair house to allow for a mixed community within the development.”

There will be no direct driveway access onto Bannockburn Road as it was felt this could cause a safety hazard.

While there will be a standard double carriage way entrance to the site this will be reduced to a single carriageway within the development to create a oneway traffic system.

“This will reduce traffic speeds etc and make it safer for pedestrians walking and children playing,” said the officials.

An existing footpath from the park to the east edge of the site is being kept as it leads through the public park and onto the village’s main street for shops, facilities and the community centre, as well as to schools and nursery.

“Where possible, private rear gardens have east, south or west orientation to afford the greatest opportunity for sunlight throughout the year,” added the officials. “Internal house layouts have been designed with either open plan living/dining/ kitchen that run front to rear and provide connection from the front to rear garden, or are situated to allow direct access from these main living spaces directly into residents’ private garden areas.”