South Kesteven District Council approve plans to change Woolsthorpe-by-Belvoir home into children’s care home despite initial refusal

Councillors were forced to approve plans to turn a house into a children’s care home despite wanting to refuse it.

Initially, members of South Kesteven District Council’s planning committee voted to refuse an application to change The Croft, 65 Main Street, Woolsthorpe-by-Belvoir into a children’s care home for up to three children, aged between seven and 17 years old.

But as they struggled to come up with planning grounds to refuse the application during the meeting yesterday (Thursday), Councillor Gloria Johnson (Con, Stamford St George’s), said that the council were “not going to win this one even if we wanted to object to it”. Despite having previously been among those to vote against it, she then suggested councillors vote again to approve.

That vote was carried meaning the plans have been approved but councillors have asked applicants Footsteps to Future for a more detailed management plan to address some of their concerns.

The proposal is to move the home from Redmile in Leicestershire, to The Croft, which has three other care homes within 180 metres of it.

During the debate, Coun Sarah Trotter (Con, Lincrest) said: “It is not that we are against the children being homed, but is it fair to keep putting these vulnerable children in a small village with inadequate facilities?

“It’s not in me to approve this, it’s not right. I am thinking of the children and I feel a bit sad that we sound like we are picking on the children because they are not in our area.

“I know it’s not a planning concern but it is mine.”

Coun Penny Milnes (Ind, Loveden Heath) agreed and said: “We know these children are going to be out of area, therefore are we under such an obligation to approve these homes when we don’t have a local need?

“Is it appropriate for us to be accommodating four of these out of area care homes in a small village?

“The village has no facilities and they are not children from Lincolnshire.”

Before the initial refusal, Coun Paul Fellows (Dem Ind, Bourne Austerby) said he could not find “any reason to turn this application down”.

He added: “I think there is a danger as caring human beings, we get drawn into conversation we don’t need to get drawn into.

“If a family with three or four children moved into the village we would be thinking nothing of it, and I think this is a family unit.

“I understand people's reservations about the number of care homes in the village but I don’t think that is a reason to close it down.

“If this was an old folks home, would we be having this conversation?”

Chairperson of the planning committee Charmaine Morgan (Dem Ind, Grantham St Vincent’s) shared the same feeling as Coun Fellows and added “we are talking about three children, not something like 20”.

Alongside the home catering for up to three children, each child would have a carer on a one-to-one basis, meaning there would be up to six people in the home at one time.

The previous care home in Redmile had to move after a breakdown in relationship between the management and residents, parish council and district council for the area.

This was due to acts of vandalism, noise complaints and anti-social behaviour which “alienated residents to such an extent that it simply was not reasonable for the children's home to remain”.

The management plan requested requires Footsteps to Future to set out details including: number of staff, the staff to children ratio, transport if needed and shift patterns.