Top: Artist's impression of the development
Bottom: Cllr Nash Ali with Jamie Massie, 5, brother Joseph, 4, and Shazad Ali, aged 7

Published: 16 August, 2012
by DAN CARRIER

IT is the stuff childhood fantasies are made of: donning hard hats and heading into school during the summer holidays to watch the place being razed to the ground.
For three young pupils at Netley Primary School on the Regent’s Park estate, that was exactly what happened this week.

Brothers Jamie and Joseph Massie and their school friend Shazad Ali joined construction workers last Thursday at the school on William Road to watch the school hall being knocked down.
In its place, Camden Council is putting up a new school, a pupil referral unit, a community learning centre and housing.

These pictures show the first images of what the new school will look like: it is planned to offer places to around 450 pupils and should be ready by the end of 2014.
Regent’s Park ward councillor Nash Ali, who was attended Netley school as a child, said: “The school was not in good condition, and this project is vital to offering a better service.
“The council’s education commission report said one of the key ways to improve standards was by doing up the buildings to improve the facilities. Without the very best facilities we will not produce a generation of high achievers.”

Cllr Ali said that as well as a new school building to replace the run-down 1960s prefabricated huts on the site, the project will provide 10 new family homes for people on Camden’s council house waiting list.

In addition to the new school, the plans include a community learning centre, which is part of a new plan to offer more IT facilities to people living in Regent’s Park.

During controversial re-jigging of library services, a survey showed the Regent’s Park library was not used for borrowing books, but was very popular for homework and after-school clubs as well as internet and other computer services. The new Netley centre will offer more of these types of facilities.

The plans include designing-out anti-social behaviour such as street drinking, drug-taking and fly-tipping in a small alleyway called Prince of Wales Passage that leads from Hampstead Road to the school.

Council housing chief, Labour’s Julian Fulbrook, said: “The community investment programme demonstrates how innovative it is possible to be, even during times of financial strain.
“We are proud to have found our own solution to the government funding cuts to schools.
“This means not only creating a new school and education buildings for children in Regent’s Park but it also gives us a chance to build 10 new council homes for those families who need them most on our waiting list.”