More than 200 people have backed a petition calling on the council to block plans to build a four-storey building at a private school.

Those living in Crown Street, Harrow-on-the-Hill, and neighbouring roads have voiced their opposition against a new teaching block at John Lyon School.

They argue it goes against a section 106 agreement signed by the school that prevents building on the Harrow-on-the-Hill conservation area.

And the position of the new teaching facility – which will replace the current two-storey ‘Oldfield House’ – will “irreparably” change the view from several residential gardens.

Andonis Violaris described the proposal as “nonsensical” since, in his eyes, it nullifies the section 106 agreement put in place when the school built a new sports block.

He believes the proposals are purely about making money and said it is a “sad reflection of modern society”.

In a letter to Harrow Council, he wrote: “The proposed building contravenes so many of the relevant Harrow planning policies that one wonders how it ever got past the pre-app stage.”

He said it will have a “long term detrimental impact on the conservation area and the surrounding listed buildings”.

And he noted that any tweaks to the building’s design are irrelevant given that, in his view, it should not be built where has been suggested in the first place.

Mr Violaris’ neighbour, Graham King, has collected more than 200 signatures as part of a petition against the plans and they have met with ward councillors to try and halt the process.

The case is set to be discussed by planning officers later this month and is scheduled to be put before the planning committee in January.

A spokesman for the school said it had listened to feedback from residents and the council and have amended the plans to “ensure the building positively benefits our pupils and local area alike”.

“New Oldfield House is a key part of our strategy to provide the best possible learning environment for the 600 local boys who study at John Lyon each year,” he said.

“It will provide state-of-the-art facilities for STEAM (science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics) subjects and allow us to better arrange teaching spaces across the school.

“It will also mean we can remove the current Oldfield building, which is not capable of being adapted to meet the requirements of modern technology and teaching.”

He accepted the “logistical challenges” attached to the proposed move but gave assurances that measures will be put in place to have “as little impact as possible on immediate residents”.