The site has become derelict since being closed nearly a decade ago
A fresh attempt to redevelop a long-neglected school site, which has been a magnet for vandalism and fires since being deserted nearly ten years ago, has been put forward.
The former Foxwood School in Hythe, which has lain derelict since its closure, is now the focus of developers who have returned with plans for 150 homes.
Ureco Ltd, in collaboration with architects Hollaway Studio and Hume Planning Consultancy, has lodged a planning application with Folkestone and Hythe District Council (FHDC).
The former SEND school on Seabrook Road has been unoccupied since 2016, following the school’s merger with Highview School on Moat Farm Road, Folkestone. Since then, the school has relocated to The Beacon on Park Farm Road in Folkestone.
“Since becoming unoccupied, the site has suffered from a lack of maintenance,” state the planning documents.
“The landscaped areas and surrounding foliage have become overgrown, significantly impacting the condition and usability of the existing buildings and grounds.”
In August this year, the already rundown former school building on the site was further damaged by a fire. This followed another blaze at the site in June.
However, FHDC’s emerging local plan earmarks the site for approximately 150 homes.
“This site presents a significant opportunity to sustainably boost the local supply of housing through the efficient use of a brownfield site within the urban boundary of Hythe,” the developers assert.
Planning consent for 150 dwellings on the plot, predominantly flats, was secured back in 2021 under the now-defunct Thanet-based firm Sunningdale Homes, which collapsed into administration in 2023.
The fresh proposal lodged by Ureco states: “Since this previous approval, the site has been acquired by the current applicant who is keen to bring forward the development.
“It is seeking to achieve a more balanced housing mix, including a higher level of houses/reduction to the number of apartments, and a more sensitive approach to integrating the natural topography and the woodland setting.”
This submission takes the form of a “hybrid application” – whereby developers are pursuing full approval with detailed designs for 60 properties, whilst requesting only outline consent for the other 90.
Outline consent grants permission purely in principle, requiring a subsequent application detailing the specifics of those 90 dwellings before construction can commence.
Among the 60 properties requiring full approval, 33 are flats – comprising 27 two-bedroom units and six three-bedroom ones.
Additionally, they’re seeking full consent for nine three-bedroom properties, 17 four-bedroom houses and a single five-bedroom residence.
Regarding the outstanding 90 homes proposed, 69 would be apartments, with the balance of 21 being houses.
Ureco is simultaneously overseeing the transformation of the adjacent former St Saviour’s Hospital site in Hythe into 51 residential units, the majority being apartments. It remains uncertain when FHDC’s planning committee will make a decision on the plans, but a target deadline of 26 February has been established.
