Children's home on Derby street could get go-ahead despite MP Baggy Shanker's concerns

Controversial plans for a new children’s home in Alvaston have been recommended for approval despite it receiving more than 20 objections – including one from a new Derby MP. Councillors will meet next week to decide whether planning permission should be granted for the conversion of a three-bed family property off Shardlow Road to become a children’s home for up to two under-18s.

Owners of the property J24 Resourcing Ltd has applied to Derby City Council for the home to operate as a provision of care and accommodation for two youngsters aged between 10 and 17. A planning statement on behalf of the owners says that during the day the youngsters “would be attending local education whilst support staff maintain the upkeep of the property”. It adds there will be no external alterations proposed to the building.

The statement says visitors are only allowed on an appointment basis, and this would be normally in daytime, between 9am and 5pm. The proposed home will have a total of six members of staff working on a shift basis.

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But there have been 24 objections to the proposal, including one from Derby South MP Baggy Shanker. His full objection does not appear within the online planning documents but a summary has been provided in a council report.

The summary says: “An objection from Baggy Shanker MP has also been received, which raises issues in relation to oversaturation of care homes in the area, noise, disruption and light pollution, anti-social behaviour, and parking issues.“

Other objections include parking-related concerns on the street as well as crime and anti-social behaviour fears.

A decision on the plans will be made at a planning committee meeting next Thursday (November 14). Ahead of the meeting Derby City Council’s planning officers have recommended councillors to give the plans the go-ahead. But councillors could still decide to refuse the plans should they wish to do so.

The recommendation is approval based on a number of conditions being imposed. Conditions could include limiting the maximum number of youngsters being cared for in the property to two and the retention of two tandem parking spaces at the property.

The recommendation report from the council states: “Whilst there is clearly a significant level of concern locally about the development, as expressed within the numerous objections letters and emails which have been received in response to the consultations carried out, from a planning perspective it is considered that it would be very difficult to argue that such a small-scale residential care facility in this location would be so detrimental to neighbour amenity that it should warrant refusal.

“With measures in place, to be controlled through condition, it is considered that the development would not have an unacceptable impact on highway safety within the locality and would not result in unacceptable harm to the amenity of neighbouring. The proposal is deemed to comply with the relevant policies in the adopted Local Plan and the advice contained within the NPPF.”

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