REMEDIATION WORK to prepare the land for a new £150million education and community campus for Ardrossan will begin next Spring - if plans are approved.

A planning application detailing the proposals for site infrastructure and the remediation works to be carried out at the site of the new Ardrossan education and community facility has been submitted.

The new school will be located on the North Shore, redeveloping the former Shell Oil site, with proposed environmental remediation work included as part of the 14-week consultation period. 

Councillor Joe Cullinane, Leader of North Ayrshire Council, said: “The remediation works on the North Shore site are a crucial part of this whole process.  We are taking a belts and braces approach with this to ensure we can progress safely with works on the site.

“We will continue to engage with local residents and provide as much information as possible to reassure them that we will leave no stone unturned to prepare the site ahead of works starting.”

As well as the new school, there are plans for housing, commercial uses, a marina extension, a coastal path, and an International Marine Science Centre at the old Shell site (North Shore area) as part of major and transformational regeneration works in the town.

The application will cover the following:

  • revetment or sea wall;
  • Site remediation (the application is accompanied by a remediation strategy outlining how site contamination will be addressed);
  • Access and site roads;
  • Coastal path;
  • Drainage and servicing.

As this is a major planning application, a 14-week pre-application consultation period has taken place which included the publication of the intention to submit an application. This also included a series of meetings with local resident groups.

The planning application for these works is accompanied by drawings illustrating the proposals and an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). 

The EIA includes an assessment of the impact of the development on issues such as noise, biodiversity, air quality, the water environment, and archaeology. 

The scope of the EIA has been agreed with the planning department following consultation with statutory consultees

The results of site investigations and a draft remediation strategy have previously been discussed with local residents and published online as part of a commitment to transparency on how the site will be treated.

Subject to planning approval, these works will proceed in Spring 2022. 

Further to the appointment of a design team in the summer, plans for the community campus are being developed and will be the subject of a separate planning application in Spring 2022.  

Detailed proposals for the campus will be available at that time.