The Vale of Glamorgan council planning committee has approved plans for Charlotte Church to turn part of her home in Dinas Powys into a school for 20 children at a meeting of committee today.

Jonny Powell, Ms Church's husband, submitted a planning application which outlines the temporary change of a detached residential/ studio annex to a non-fee-paying school for pupils aged between 10 and 12 years old until the 31st of July 2020.

The school would be funded by Ms Church in its first year.

The application site is located at the Spinney, Twyncyn in Dinas Powys.

The planning committee agenda states that: ''The school would be operated by two members of staff and children would arrive and depart the site via a walking bus under teacher supervision, and would be dropped off and collection from the Dinas Powys Bowls Club, St Andrews Road.''

The route the pupils would take would be made in a walking bus style fashion.

The Council's Road Safety staff have undertaken a risk assessment of that route in accordance with the Learner Travel Statutory Provision and Operational Guidance June 2014.

There are no highway safety concerns with the application.

Stephen Butler, the planning officer allocated to the site, said: ''In all my years of working I have never seen such an extensive risk assessment submitted.''

The proposed opening times of the school are 10:00 – 16:30 hours (weekdays) but the building and site is already being used to teach children between the hours of 10:00 and 12:30.

A total of 26 letters of objection and 12 letters of support were submitted.

The main matters raised in the letters of objection relate a school being out of character with the area, noise and disturbance, traffic generation, parking and safety concerns given lack of footways on the Twyncyn.

The application has been supported by noise and travel assessments, which have been undertaken and it is concluded that the proposal would not cause unreasonable noise and disturbance to the amenities of any nearby occupiers.

Mr Ewan Williams, the agent for the applicant, spoke at the committee meeting. He said: ''The Project has already made links and partnerships of some of the best schools in the country.

''My client has recognised the need for a new type of school.

''All of the children who have been chosen to be involved are really enthusiastic.''

The Planning Statement outlines the concept of the school.

It states: ''The Awen Project is to provide an autonomous, free to attend, democratic school which enables children to not only choose their path of learning and shape their futures but to have a direct input into the design and construction of their learning space and the school curriculum.

''The vision is that each new year of pupils will contribute to the development of the school structure and teaching methods, allowing constant evolution and enabling the

school, pupils and teachers to respond rapidly to changing society.

''The first intake from September 2019 comprises 20 children, ages 10 to 12 years old, who will be taught in two classrooms provided at ground and first floor levels of the annexe building at The Spinney.''

The Planning Statement states that ''it is the intention that every year the school will 'grow up and down' by a year to eventually teach pupils ranging from 3 to 16 years old.''

Supporting information has been submitted stating that there is an urgency to commit to an alternative site as pupil roll numbers will increase.

The planning reports states that ''the existing building is at capacity for current pupil numbers and is therefore self-limiting to a single year's use, given that under Estyn rules, a school would not be able to operate at over-capacity.''

A letter submitted by the applicants states that whilst an alternative site has not yet been secured, it does provide assurance that a search is ongoing, for which the process is part of the school curriculum and enables the pupils to have a greater amount of control over their school environment.

Dinas Powys Community Council objected to the proposal as being "detrimental to the character" of the area.

Councillor Andrew Robertson strongly objected to the application as the proposal is against the wishes of all the neighbours of the Spinney.

He stated at the committee meeting that: ''The route from the bowls club up to the spinneys is totally unsuitable, I think, for children to walk''.

Despite the reservations brought up at planning committee the application was accepted and may go ahead.