Concerns raised about change of use plans for Elmbank House in Berwick

Horizons Residential Care Ltd has applied to Northumberland County Council to turn a guest house at Elmbank House in Spittal into accommodation for up to five vulnerable children/young people.

It says in its planning statement that it ‘will not be a secure home, nor a home for a young person being placed under any criminal orders’.

But local residents have raised concerns over the impact of such a change and they have set out why they believe this area is unsuitable for such a purpose.

However, nine people have put on record their support for the application – with one saying the objection comments show a “misunderstanding about caring for vulnerable children”.

The building is a large six-bedroom property and the bid would not alter the existing building footprint or layout. Horizons says the home would be licenced by Ofsted, staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and be overseen and managed on a day-to-day basis by a registered manager.

In her objection, Danielle Wood says: “The fact of the matter is there are elderly, vulnerable residents who live alone in this area.

“And whilst the majority of cared for children can be very well behaved and adjust to their environment well, a lot of cared for children do sadly suffer with quite complex behavioural disorders and there cannot be a guarantee that the children of this facility will behave and not cause any distress to the upstanding residents in the area.”

Ian Fraser’s objection includes the following: “Whilst conscious of the need for housing for vulnerable young people, Elmbank is totally unsuitable for this purpose.

“Cow Road is a very quiet location with no amenities for young people, it is difficult to see how they could amuse themselves at evenings and weekends.”

But Theresa Warner says in her letter of support that “I could not think of a nicer environment than Elmbank House for the children/young people”.

And Eileen McDade said: “I have worked for some 20 years in residential child care and have never come across so much misunderstanding about caring for vulnerable children. They are not at all the persons they have been badly painted in some of the objections I have read.”