Last night, Wednesday 13 July, the Executive of Rochford District Council agreed to reopen The Mill Arts & Events Centre (The Mill) in Rayleigh.

As part of its Asset Delivery Programme, the Council has been considering options for the redevelopment of this important community asset.

After extensive consultation with local residents and community groups the Council this week presented the Executive with three options: To continue to develop a business case to consider a new build facility or refurbishment; to keep The Mill mothballed and, finally, to reopen The Mill.

The Executive agreed to reopen The Mill in September 2022.

Cllr Simon Wootton, Leader, Rochford District Council, said: “I am delighted that my Executive colleagues agree with me that reopening The Mill is the best way forward for us to achieve our shared ambition of a facility that serves the diverse needs of our local communities, that enhances the public realm in Rayleigh and gives our residents a real voice in an asset that is at the heart of our local life.”

The Council will work in partnership with its leisure partner Fusion Lifestyle to maintain, staff and operate the building in the immediate short-term.

The Council will also launch a community engagement programme to seek Expressions of Interest from community groups to operate the building in the medium and longer term.

It was also resolved at the meeting for The Freight House in Rochford to be reopened as soon as possible. This is in advance of the Council taking a formal decision regarding commencement of refurbishment and development works at the site.

The Council welcomes discussion with residents and community groups interested in booking The Mill Arts & Events Centre or wishing to express an interest in operating the building.

Please contact the Council’s Leisure & Cultural Services Team via email, or call them on 01702 963328.

A meeting of the Executive, on Wednesday 13 July, will consider options for the way forward regarding the future of the Mill Hall in Rayleigh.

I know that the Mill Hall is of great importance to our residents, and quite understandably residents have asked me when I will be able to say more regarding the future of the building.

Throughout the process to investigate environmentally and financially sustainable options for the building and the wider site the Council has sought the views of our residents.

Last autumn, as Leader I made a pledge that in considering the future development of the site, I was committed to ensure that the Council considers alternative proposals which did not include residential development.

In March of this year the Cross Party Partnership Panel Members expressed and endorsed a strong view that any scheme put forward in response to the outcome of this Workstream would not include residential or commercial units, and parking capacity would remain as at present.

The meeting of Executive on 13 July, being the first opportunity for a formal Council decision, will debate three options for the site; to continue to develop a business case to consider a new build facility, to keep the Mill Hall mothballed and finally to reopen the Mill Hall, the intention being September 2022.

Having already ruled out any residential development on the site, I have honoured my commitment to listen, pause and carefully consider the many and varied views of our community concerning the future of the building.

I believe reopening the Mill would be the best way forward for us to achieve our shared ambition of a facility that serves all the diverse needs of our local communities, that enhances the public realm in Rayleigh and gives our residents a real voice in an asset that is at the heart of our local life.  I would also welcome further discussion with community groups to explore longer term community partnership options for the building.

Finally, regarding the Freight House in Rochford, to assist the community ahead of the Council taking a formal decision regarding commencement of refurbishment and development works at the site, the Council will seek to reopen the building. Further information will be set out in a report to Members in the Autumn.

As previously stated Executive Members will have the opportunity to consider and debate the options in detail at its meeting in July.

Rochford District Council is to revisit its requirements for the Mill Arts & Events Centre site following a decision taken at council last night. The Full Council meeting saw councillors agree that a separate Outline Business Case, to include a full options analysis, be undertaken with regards to the Mill Arts & Events Centre site and the results brought back to Council in due course

The move follows Leader, Cllr Simon Wootton’s previous announcement that,  “We have also taken on board representations about the green spaces, locally important trees and concerns about residential development. Turning to the Mill Hall itself, we received considerable feedback about the proposed replacement building, especially in relation to the optimum size it should be. We have not come to any view as yet, but it is imperative, whatever the eventual solution is, that it meets community needs and is also financially viable.

Cllr Wootton added; “I am also clear that any new building must be designed and built in a way to be highly environmentally sustainable, supporting the Council’s ambition to become carbon neutral. For these reasons, any new scheme for the Mill Hall site as a whole, will be subject to a further options analysis. This will include an in-person engagement process with the public to gauge views before a final decision is made.”

Full engagement with residents was undertaken with the original proposals and the feedback from those findings can be seen on the Voyage Partnership Website

The new outline business case will come before Council in 2022.

I promised that the Council would carry out a public engagement process regarding the Asset Delivery Programme and this is of course what took place. Additionally I said that the feedback received would be published transparently for all to see and this too has been fulfilled. Not only have these promises been upheld but the Council also followed through with a period of reflection to consider this feedback.

I am pleased to inform you that the planning application for Numbers 3-15 South Street, the Council’s existing office buildings, has now been submitted as part of the Council’s Asset Delivery Programme. This gives the opportunity for a further period of public consultation as part of the planning process before the Development Committee makes a formal decision about this site.

The Voyage Partnership website has been updated with a simple guide setting out the changes that we have made to the designs for 3-15 South Street as a direct result of the public feedback received.

The scheme proposes to bring forward twenty high quality, environmentally sustainable homes in the heart of Rochford town, with parking, amenity space and landscaping. The scheme includes a new modern all-electric energy solution and solar panels have been added to the roofs of the buildings to the rear of the site. The full planning applications for 3-15 South Street can be found here: 21/01241/FUL & 21/01242/LBC.

The regeneration of No 19 South Street is also progressing. The site already has planning permission but our partner gbpartnerships has submitted an application for minor works to enhance the design and functionality of the proposed refurbishment and change of use to residential dwellings.

It is vital to allow the time for all views to be heard so that these can be considered and reflected in the designs where possible. And I would encourage further public contribution to the planning consultation process.

The other sites within the Asset Delivery Programme have been subject to the same period of reflection and changes are being made as a result of this process. I look forward to sharing how these schemes have positively changed as a result of the feedback and this will be available on the Voyage website once the planning applications have been submitted in the next few weeks.

In the meantime, it is important to remember that as part of the planning application, there will be a further period of public consultation. The proposals for the Mill Arts & Events Centre site in Rayleigh are, of course, the subject of a report to be considered at a meeting of the Council on 2 December.

Cllr Simon Wootton, Leader of Rochford District Council has today issued a statement on the way forward with the Mill site.
Please click here to read the statement in full.

The Deputy Leader of Rochford District Council, Cllr Cheryl Roe has thanked residents for their feedback to the Council’s proposed Asset Delivery Programme which has been published on the Voyage website today.

Cllr Cheryl Roe said; “In the last few weeks we have been sharing the council’s proposals for our Asset Delivery Programme and meticulously compiling all the feedback received and the valuable views given. I would like to thank each and every person who took the time to take part in the online survey, wrote to us and attended the live public webinars. In all 1,133 responses were received, all of which are vital as we move forward to shape the future of the District.

Key to this, is the ongoing transparency of the council’s proposals and the residents’ views. The Leader and I promised that the feedback whether positive or negative would be compiled and published for all to see, and today as promised, this information is now ready to view on the Voyage website. This means that we can take time to reflect on all the opinions expressed and this is what we, as councillors, will do.”

The Asset Delivery Programme covers six sites 3-15 South Street, Rochford, 57 South Street, Rochford, Freight House, Rochford, Civic Suite Site, Rayleigh, The Mill Site, Rayleigh and 19 South Street, Rochford.

Engagement included:

** Updating the website on a regular basis with the proposals and related information

** ‘Have your Say’ for residents’ views via an online survey

** Sharing information through the media and social media

** Holding two live public webinars question and answer sessions which were then made available via the Council’s YouTube channel

A summary of the feedback received, the number of responses, the method of communication and the theme of the feedback is on the www.voyage-partnership.co.uk website Feedback page.

A redacted version of the detailed data that sits behind this summary is available on request via the Voyage Partnership website Contact page.

The Council is aware of a digitally created image that has been circulated on social media recently regarding the proposed development at The Mill Arts & Events Centre site in Rayleigh.

The image appears to show a block of flats superimposed on the site immediately adjacent to the existing pavement approaching the Windmill.

This image is not an accurate representation and has not been created by the Council or its partner gbpartnerships.

The Voyage website, www.voyage-partnership.co.uk specifically launched for this purpose, remains the location of all official information regarding the proposals. This includes images and sketches of the current proposals. The information on the website has been provided across a wide range of media including the recent webinars and shows accurate representations of the proposals at this time.