Traffic fears over plan for nursery near former medical clinic

Residents have voiced concerns about potential parking and traffic problems if plans to transform a former medical clinic into a nursery go ahead.

The proposals include new hardstanding and access from Guards Club Road, 14 car parking spaces, cycle parking and an external store – part of plans to change the use of the former medical clinic at 160 Bridge Road into a nursery with a children’s playground.

The building is separate to the neighbouring Bridge Clinic, which remains open.

Speaking on behalf of neighbours in 15 homes on Guards Club Road, chairman of the residents’ association Harald Bodenhofer told the Advertiser the proposal should look at potential congestion.

“It wasn’t as much of an issue when it was a medical centre because patients came and went throughout the day, so it wasn’t concentrated in a specific time,” he said. “If you have kids, there’s a rush to drop them at nursery and carry on to work, so it will be concentrated from 8am to 9.30am or 10am, which will make it impossible to get in and out of this road, and again at 3.30pm and probably 6pm.

“We are the riverside conservation area and there are always cyclists, and other road users which have not been considered in this development.”

Nearly 20 objections have been submitted to the Royal Borough planning portal.

Resident Baron Menzel submitted an objection ‘predicated upon the increase in car traffic’ during morning rush hour.

He said the increase in traffic would cause further delays in all directions and requested a traffic impact study be carried out.

Ward councillors Jack Douglas and Gurch Singh (Lib Dem, St Marys) also submitted their concerns about the impact of the proposal on highway safety.

Cllr Singh said increased traffic could result in higher pollution levels and safety hazards.

According to the design and access statement, the proposed nursery would accommodate 126 children as well as 20 to 30 full and part-time staff.

The nursery would be open on weekdays for 51 weeks in the year and would likely operate between 7.30am and 6.30pm.

The applicant is working with Kinderzimmer, the third largest private early years education provider in Germany, which is likely to be the operator of the nursery if planning permission is granted.

However, some support has been seen for increased childcare provisions in the borough.

Ben Wright, school place planning and capital programme manager at Achieving for Children, consulted with the Royal Borough’s Early Years team and said they had no objection to the nursery, which would provide additional places for parents who live in the area.

He wrote in an email to the planning team that ‘there is a need for more childcare in central Maidenhead. It is assumed that all drop-off and parking will be onsite, as there is nowhere locally to park safely’.

Savills, which submitted the application, has been contacted for comment.