Future youth provision in Twickenham

The Council will be consulting young people on the future provision of youth services in Twickenham. We have an opportunity to provide a new youth centre on the former Royal Mail sorting office site, which has recently been acquired by the developer St James, part of the Berkeley Group.

Following discussions with the Council, St James has agreed to investigate the provision of a new centre as part of wider mixed-use development proposals. This presents an opportunity to provide the existing youth facilities, currently based at Heatham, in a brand new, ‘state of the art’ youth centre, which would be modern, cost efficient, inclusive, accessible for all and fit for purpose for providing services and activities that young people want and need.

The Council is committed to ensuring there is high quality provision of youth services in Twickenham and is keen to consult young people on possible options for future provision, including keeping Heatham House Youth Centre.

The consultation with young people will take place between 16 January and 16 February 2012, alongside the wider consultation on the Twickenham Area Action Plan.

The Council will consider the consultation results and the preferred option identified by young people but reserves the right as the landowner to make a final decision, based on a considered appraisal of all the issues.

Consultation scope:

The consultation is open to young people age 9-19 years old and up to 24 for those with a learning disability or difficulty that reside and or are educated within the borough.

The consultation is focused on presenting the following three options for future youth provision in central Twickenham, providing young people with an opportunity to indicate their preferred choice within the options and to feedback on the proposals.

See the map of where the options are located

Option one: Build a new youth centre at the front of the former Royal Mail sorting office site

The new youth centre would be a three storey building revolving around a substantial multi-use central hall for events, dance, indoor skate and so on, and containing a recording studio, rehearsal rooms, multi-use workshop space, café with outdoor terrace, training kitchen, electronic arts and ICT hub, club space, meeting room, changing facilities, counselling and private space, offices and outdoor sports area.

It would be provided to the front of the former sorting office site with its entrance fronting London Road. It is likely that the new facility would be incorporated within a larger building, potentially accommodating other uses such as residential or commercial premises and served by separate entrances.

The overall level of floor space delivered would be on a like-for-like basis with Heatham House. There would be an opportunity to provide additional outdoor seating areas adjoining the building (possibly linking with the new café unit) where it would front the London Road and the River Crane. The existing outdoor sport facilities currently serving Heatham House would be retained and would be accessible by a dedicated footpath to the side of the building. The existing workshop which lies adjacent to the sports pitches could also be retained, freeing up the proposed workshop space within the new facility for other activities.

View the proposed concepts for option one(pdf, 393KB)

Option two: Build a new youth centre at the rear of the former Royal Mail sorting office site

The new youth centre would be provided to the rear of the former sorting office site, beyond any wider redevelopment. Access would be through Brewery Lane (and potentially by a riverside walk). The centre would be identical to the one above, but would be a free standing purpose built facility and the overall level of floorspace delivered would be on a like-for-like basis with Heatham House. New outdoor sports facilities would be constructed adjacent to the new building again delivering a like-for-like replacement of those currently provided at Heatham House. Outdoor seating or breakout space could also be provided adjacent to the building (possibly linking with the new café unit).

View the proposed concepts for option two(pdf, 392KB)

Option three: Keep Heatham House

Heatham House is a large Georgian house situated on the corner of London Road and Whitton Road in Twickenham, close to the railway station. It has functioned as a youth centre since the 1950s and has been a popular facility accessed by many young people. It has a multi-use hall for indoor skateboarding, live events including music, dance, drama and comedy, two band rehearsal rooms, a recording studio, café, informal space for traditional youth club activities and just relaxing with friends, meeting rooms, counselling space, a motor workshop and outdoor grounds and sporting facilities.

It is restricted in terms of further adaptation, extension or development due to planning restrictions. The facility is also not fully accessible. The ongoing cost of maintenance and repair of this facility are high and will continue to be high given the age of the building and conservation requirements.

View the existing provision at Heatham House Youth Centre(pdf, 1037KB)

How to get involved

To qualify to submit your choice of your preferred option, you need to be aged 9-19 years old or up to 24 years for those with a learning disability or difficulty and reside and or are educated within the borough.

Submit your email address to be sent a link to complete the consultation.

Only one submission per person will be counted.

Paper copies of the form will be distributed through youth clubs, or contact the Youth Office for more information.

Phone: 020 8891 7537

Events

Youth workers will also be travelling around the borough to speak with young people about the consultation, the dates for which are in the following table:

For the events at Heatham House on 15 February from 12noon and at Kingsfield Skate park from 1.00pm, there is an opportunity to meet the developer and ask questions.

Frequently asked questions

For your information, a document of frequently asked questions(pdf, 214KB) for the consultation has been created. If your question isn't answered within this document, please email: youth@richmond.gov.uk