The locating of the Darwen Aldridge Academy at Redearth has only one virtue, due to the lack of consideration of the Labour Party for the residents of the area, it saw them defeated in the 2007 Local Government election as the voters knew full well their wishes were being ignored by the dictatorial council.

The Darwen Aldridge Academy is supposed to have entrepreneurial and sports based themes, that was its initial concept. How on earth can there be a sports theme without playing fields and an athletics track of high standard, which there is the facility for at Moorland and what businesses in Darwen can offer commercial work experience to business based students. It appears to me that Aldridge will find the Academy a ready source of lowly paid clerks to administer his BBC Television Licence Payment Centre, hence the siting of the ‘battery hen coup’ of an Academy in the town centre location, causing unwanted pollution and congestion. The jury is out on whether it will be fit for purpose. I am also told that the coalition parties have not yet resolved the matter of compensation for the compulsory purchase of former homes.

Politicalwatch makes entirely negative comments. Surely he / she should be welcoming a 6th Form in Darwen ? Or is he / she content to carry on letting Darwen have the highest % numbers of 16-18 year olds not in education, employment or training in the whole of Lancashire ?
The Academy will have a sports centre, cracking large all weather pitch (that won't be waterlogged) and use of pitches at Blacksnape. As well as first rate pc facilities, adult education facilities, etc etc - it will be a first rate school.
The town centre location is great, as it will stimulate Darwen's economy. 250, mostly well paid, staff right in the town centre rather than stuck out at the edge of town.
PoliticalWatch forgets that the other parties promised to locate the Academy at Moorland, but then broke their promise within 3 weeks of forming the coalition. They knew full well BEFORE the 2007 election that the Academy had to be sited at Redearth not Moorland. They told lies to the electorate - the Labour Party was honest.
The houses at Redearth were originally earmarked for demolition NOT because of the Academy but because of their condition / social problems and 27% empty properties. More properties were demolished in the Redearth area by the former Darwen Council which was never Labour. And there was no school in site. Why did Darwen Council do this ?
The new school will be great for Darwen. Don't be so negative !

I would like to know how Guardin,darwen knows that the houses at Redearth were not originally earmarked for demolition NOT because of the New Academy unless he was on the Council that voted for them to be demolished as being unfit to live in etc also he must have voted for the Academy to be built in the redearth area so he must know that it was unpopular and it should have been built where it is just now at old Moorland High School and we are not being negative about this but we will have to see if this works or not.

True Darwener is partially correct. The homes left at Redearth were going to be demolished in the early 1970's by Darwen Council - but Darwen Council did not have the money to do so at the time. (it had demolished about 250 prpoerties in the area previously). This can be confirmed by the Darwen Building Surveyor at the time. Along with properties in the Queen St area, the ones left at Redearth were the worst houses in Darwen in terms of physical condition, numbers of empty properties and social condition.

As a result the Council decided they should be demolished as part of the Govts HMR programme via ELEVATE. ie. monies became available via ELEVATE to demolish the worst houses in East Lancs.

Residents of the Redearth area had been complaining for donkey's years about the area, condition of houses, number of empty properties, drug, alcohol & vandalism problems, fly tipping, vermin, nuisance neighbours etc etc; All this is on record. Indeed, residents had petitioned the Council for certain blocks to be demolished. The area was extremely unpopular, mostly private rented with increasing empty properties. 27% were empty.
So, BEFORE THE ACADEMY WAS EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT, the Council were considering demolishing these properties. (along with Queen St) When the money became available (via ELEVATE) to do so, the Council undertook the consultation to decide what to do.
Many residents were completely in favour of demolition. (some were not). But the decision was taken to demolish for the reasons above, The decision to demolish HAD ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SITING OF THE ACADEMY. This was confirmed in the independent Inspectors Report.

Once the decision to demolish had been taken, obviously, a large open space would become available, - the Council had to think what could go there. It was as this point that that the Academy was proposed.

Actually Guardian is wrong.

That the decision to clear the houses had noting to do with the siting of the Academy was not confirmed by one Independant Inspector's report.

It was confirmed by two Independant Inspectors report and the judgement by the judge of the appeal by the 11 remaining residents.

The Ex-councillor(Guardi
an - my elbow)has his wires crossed. The council maintained that Redearth was not fit for habitation, but the 2006 Public Enquiry overturned this view - there had been bogus surveys.

The 2007 Public Enquiry into the Town and Country Planning compulsory purchase was upheld for the construction of the Aldridge Labour Academy and this was upheld, and an appeal to the High Court was overturned.

It is not widely known that the second Inspector came from Farnham the home town of Rod Aldridge - What was going on there?

What are the coalition going to do about fully compensating the remaining house owners - the elections are getting nearer.