Plans go in for new Wisbech Park Community Hub

Vandal resistant is one of the key design features needed for a proposed new £600,000 community hub for Wisbech Town Park.

That's according to a report published alongside a planning application which has been submitted by Pick Everard on behalf of Fenland District Council for a single-storey community hub, which includes a multi-purpose hall, café and toilets to be built on the west edge of the park next to the apple orchard.

The application comes over a year after it was announced the project had won £240,000 of funding from Cambridgeshire County Council and a further £299,000 from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.

Wisbech Town Council and Fenland District Council have also pledged £20,000 for the project.

A design and access statement drawn up by Pick Everard, a consultancy practice that works within the property, infrastructure and construction industry, explains how the building’s size, layout and appearance has been developed and how the resulting building will be easy to use and navigate.

It explains the key design drivers were to ensure the building was vandal-resistant, energy efficient and with low running costs. The building will not only include the multi-purpose hall and café but also two sets of toilets as well as changing facilities. There will be toilets provided in and outside of the building.

The proposed external loos, which will include a disabled facility, will replace the existing public toilet block on site and will serve as primary public toilets for the park.

The statement acknowledges the new building needs to fit in with the historic Victorian park, which covers 12 acres and was developed in the 19th century, and needs to also be value for money with minimal ongoing maintenance costs.

Possible vandalism was raised during the pre-application consultation and it was suggested concealed metal shutters could help protect the building's windows and these have been included in the application.

The report explains the chosen location should help reduce noise disturbance as it is away from existing homes and is also near other buildings already in the park.

It adds: "The proposed location maximises the views into the park and also increases visibility of the hub. The existing CCTV on the south side of the park helps maintain surveillance over the hub and address vandalism issues prevalent in the area."

New paths are proposed to connect the community hub to existing paths. External seating has been proposed opposite the entrance and internal café seating.

Last summer Fenland Council ran a survey asking the public's views on the hub and what they would like to see provided and that attracted 220 responses in a month. Those views have been taken into consideration with the drawing up of the plans.

You can view the application on Fenland council's planning portal using reference: F/YR22/0973/FDC