Extended outdoor play hours approved for Oakley Pre-school
Bedford Borough Council’s planning committee has approved extended outdoor play hours at Oakley Pre-School after adding a new fencing condition aimed at addressing neighbours’ concerns about noise.
Councillors voted unanimously on Monday (March 23) to approve the deferred application for the kindergarten, based behind the Methodist Church on High Street, Oakley, after a site visit and further debate over how the outdoor areas are used.
This followed a vote on the original officer recommendation for approval which failed after the committee chair used his casting vote to break a tie.
The application sought to vary conditions attached to the site, updating the pre-school’s operating hours, and replacing the existing 2022 noise management plan with a revised 2025 version.
Members were told the site is divided into four zones, with Zones A and B covering indoor spaces and parking, and Zones C and D covering the outdoor areas.
Zone C will now be allowed to operate from 8.15am to 5.45pm on weekdays, while Zone D can be used from 9am to 4pm. Under the current permission, all outdoor areas are restricted to 9.15am to 3.30pm Monday to Friday.
Planning officers said since last month’s meeting seven additional neighbour representations had been received, all in support of the application.
However, committee members remained concerned about children straying beyond the approved red-line boundary into a treed area closer to neighbouring homes.
Councillor Jonathan Abbott (Lib Dem, Clapham and Oakley), chair of the committee, said the pre-school was a “really successful kindergarten” but added that members also had to be mindful of residents living nearby.
“Obviously [the kindergarten] had a noise management plan since the nursery opened, [but] they have admitted they’re going outside the red line already,” he said.
After an initial motion to approve the scheme in line with the officer recommendation fell, members agreed a revised proposal requiring a fence and gate to be installed along the southern boundary of the site.
Following the unanimous approval for the newly conditioned application, councillor Abbott said: “I hope that provides some relief to the residents.
“But also hope it allows the kindergarten to allow the children to enjoy being outside and all the good things that being outside in nature provides.”