Anger at section of Ashampstead Road being closed for almost a year so Bradfield College can carry out repair work on boarding house

Nearby residents have been reacting angrily after Bradfield College announced a road near the school will be closed throughout almost all of 2025.

Ashampstead Road from the main crossroads by the college up to the River Pang will be fully closed from 8am to 5pm on weekdays from mid-February to mid-April, late June to mid-July and late October to mid-November.

From mid-April to late June, mid-July to late October and mid-November to mid-December, the road will be closed from 9.30am to 3.30pm on weekdays.

This means there will be a collective period of only around two months during 2025 when the section of road will not be affected by closures.

Four-way lights will be in operation outside of these closure hours and on weekends.

The road will be closed to HGVs for the duration of the works.

The closure is being enforced so that work can be carried out to repair the roof, windows and external façade of a grade II listed building on Bradfield College’s grounds that comprises one of the college’s boarding houses and associated staff residential accommodation.

A college spokesperson said: “Following our initial letter to local residents and business representatives regarding the restrictions planned next year on Ashampstead Road, we then met many of them at an information meeting last month.

“It was very useful for us to understand in more detail the concerns that they have.

“We are now considering all the feedback we have received so we can review the project with our professional partners and contractors and explore any possible options to further reduce the disruption to the local community.

“Although we have worked hard to enable the road to be open at certain times, avoiding a full closure for the duration of the repairs, we fully acknowledge the significant inconvenience the proposed closures and resulting diversions will cause.

“We will be providing an update to all stakeholders before Christmas and we are developing an area on the College website to share updates as the projects progresses.”

Residents who live close to the school and regular Ashampstead Road users have been reacting negatively to the news of the significant closures on social media.

Laith Hofayz described the closures as “incredibly selfish, egocentric and utterly irresponsible” on Facebook.

He said: “This will cause mayhem locally for well over a year. In fact, as with all similar works, I strongly suspect this will bleed with inevitable delays well into 2026.

“Incredibly inconsiderate to the local community, and will undoubtedly have repercussions.”

Liam Peake commented on how the closure will affect his business. He said: “Our event production company is based on Yattendon Estate and we use this route daily during working hours.

“For our HGVs there will be a 25 mile detour via Newbury. That’s an extra 50 miles per event.

“It will literally cost us money.”

Nearby neighbour Jemma McKay said: “We live on the road and [I] am so, so cross. It will make our lives a misery for months on end.”