Former Heanor Grammar School: Infamous ‘eyesore’ building will finally be demolished

An infamous “eyesore” building in a Derbyshire town will finally be demolished after clearing a final hurdle. At an Amber Valley Borough Council meeting last night (June 12) the fate of the old science block on the former Heanor Grammar School site was finally sealed after years of frustration.

Councillors approved the demolition of the former science block, built in the 60s, as part of the overall £8 million regeneration of the grammar school site. It is hoped demolition of the block will help developers come forward with plans for what they would like to build in its place, with the council currently unable to afford to develop that part of the plot.

Council plans, when it thought it was going to be able to afford it, were for the science block to become a cinema and restaurants “to both assist the transformation of the town centre and support the long-term sustainability of the former Grammar School site”. Cllr Paul Jones, Heanor Mayor, told the meeting the science block was a “blot on the landscape”.

Read more: Heanor Grammar School plans to transform mostly derelict old building take important step forward

He said: “It is a massive hindrance to the redevelopment of the site and demolishing it will arguably enhance the town and the site. With that eyesore gone it will only enhance the possibility of the redevelopment of the grammar school site and it is a wonderful opportunity to improve and build on what is already happening in the town.”

Cllr Trevor Holmes, a Labour councillor, said: “It is a pity you couldn’t take the Conservative Club with it and redevelop the whole of that plot.” In March, the council had been forced to cut the science block section of the site’s redevelopment from its plans due to budget restrictions.

A £4 million Levelling Up Funding bid for the science block part of the project was unsuccessful but the council had already secured £8.6 million (after bidding for £17.8 million) specifically for the former grammar school, through the Future High Streets Fund, a separate Government grant. While it had been dropped, councillors were also clear that demolition and regeneration of the science block area must find its way to get funded and bulldozed as soon as possible.