Maidenhead & Windsor

# Sensory Garden Planned For Maidenhead Kidwells Park #

One of the Maidenhead Royal Borough's most ambitious community projects is likely to take another step forward as cabinet prepares to give the go-ahead for the next stage of the proposal to relocate Maidenhead Castle Hill Youth and Community Centre to the grade II listed 4 Marlow Road.

If recommendations to next Thursday's meeting (January 26) are approved, it will also pave the way for a new sensory garden for Maidenhead people with visual and other disabilities in the adjacent Kidwells Park.

Cabinet approval would mean that the Castle Hill site could be sold to fund the project which would:

* refurbish and equip 4 Marlow Road, including the building of a brand new extension to meet the needs of the young people and the many local people and groups who use the existing centre
* provide modern accommodation for a much wider range of community organisations, including Relate, the No 22 youth counselling service and the Citizens' Advice Bureau
* at the same time retain and improve the features of the distinctive building, formerly the local technical college.

The new Maidenhead centre would also enable:

* the design and planting of an accessible sensory garden in Kidwells Park to replace the garden formerly sited in the grounds adjacent to 4 Marlow Road
* closer links with the popular and wide-ranging outdoor youth provision in the park.

Cllr Richard Fagence, lead member for Maidenhead leisure and cultural services, said this was a golden opportunity for youth and community provision close to Maidenhead town centre and, at the same time, a unique chance to take a fresh look at how best to use the Castle Hill site to improve the surrounding area.

He explained: "The dilapidated Castle Hill building does nothing to enhance this important part of Maidenhead and by making the site available for sale we can not only ensure that any new development is in keeping with the local environment but also achieve a state-of-the-art centre at Marlow Road. This is a win-win situation for Maidenhead."

Cllr Vicky Howes, lead member for Maidenhead property, stressed that the borough would keep careful control on what happened at Castle Hill when the youth and community centre moves and also ensure that the local community is consulted.

She said: "If cabinet approves the recommendation we will advertise for possible partners to express an interest in the site. Once a partner has been identified we will make sure there is further consultation with neighbours and centre users to help us decide the most appropriate development for the future."

In the meantime the Maidenhead council will submit the Marlow Road scheme to English Heritage for their approval and then put in a formal planning application. If all the permissions are forthcoming, the aim is to put the scheme out to tender in the late summer and for the work to be completed by the end of next year.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead