The proposal to develop the part of our city known as Frog Valley has now been passed to the local council for consideration and approval. In case you missed earlier newspaper reports, here briefly are some of the changes and improvements that are being planned for the site.

An area of land in the south-east corner of Frog Valley has been allocated to the construction of a new primary school which, if building does go ahead, will accommodate 300 children. The size and location of the school mean that admission will not be limited to families who live in the area.

Another feature that will bring people together will be the new shopping mall. Plans are to move all the existing local shops, which are currently located in small groups around the site, into one shopping zone, and this will see the addition of an organic farm shop and a vegan store.

A community centre will be central to the development of the site. It will provide a much needed meeting place for clubs and societies that, until now, have had to meet wherever they can find a venue. The pride of the centre will be a multi-gym with swimming pool – something younger residents have been requesting for some time but that has never been possible, due to cost.

For many years now, local businesspeople have been asking for better business premises, and this is now a priority for Frog Valley. Twenty thousand square metres of space will be used to house anything from small startups to large existing local businesses. It will be built to the south-east of the site, with dedicated car parking for office workers, either within each office area or in a single car park.

At our public consultation meeting, some residents asked if it would be possible to include services such as dentistry and various types of medical testing facilities within the health centre. This would mean adding to the existing building and there are no plans to do this at present. However, it will be possible to see a doctor at weekends and in the evenings, which is a welcome development.