Two care homes for children planned in Sutton -- including at former pub

If approved, the residential homes would be created at properties within the Skegby ward – at the former Maypole pub on Dawgates Lane and also at 41 Dragonfly View, near Beck Lane.

The council has received change-of-use planning applications for both houses, with the Dawgates Lane scheme submitted by a Leicestershire-based company, called T-Junction Children’s Services.

The firm is run by Tim and Rob Clare, aged 37 and 36 respectively, who are both care-leavers themselves. They say their “overarching aim is to provide an outstanding service for children who come in to care through no fault of their own”.

"The purpose is to provide outstanding accommodation, outstanding support and outstanding care, which will always encompass a warm and homely environment,” T-Junction says.

"We will always endeavour to build young people’s confidence, self-esteem, resilience and independence as we recognise how important these are in ensuring young people go on to lead fulfilling and successful lives.”

The former Maypole pub building at 33 Dawgates Lane, not to be confused with Dawgates Cottage which is further down the lane, is an expansive five-bedroom property that was sold recently after being marketed for £650,000.

The rural pub closed in June 2023 and was initially marketed for £395,000. After being sold, planning permission was granted to convert it into a family house.

A planning statement by the applicants says the care home there would be for a maximum of four young people, aged six to 17, who would be looked after 24/7 by a team of adult carers, with management support. At least two adults would sleep at the home each night.

The home, which boasts a spacious garden, would be regulated by the education watchdog, Ofsted. The T-Junction team “would be expected to provide good care and support and fulfil tasks with the young people as most parents or foster parents would”.

There were no close neighbours and “significant parking space” was available. "The home would not be changed and would continue to look like, and operate as, a typical home in a typical street,” the statement adds.

The application stresses that the Clares “bring a wealth of experience” to the sector and already operate other residential children’s homes.

It also points out that there is “a continued need for such homes in Nottinghamshire, where “there is insufficient suitable accommodation to meet the current numbers of children who come in to care”.

The Dragonfly View proposal has been submitted by Wayne Brankin, the 53-year-old boss of Positive Independence Ltd, based in Newark.

The firm says it “provides care and support for young people to gain the skills and knowledge required for an independent life”. Its philosophy was one “of delivering personalised care”.

The four-bedroom Sutton property would be converted into a small care home for two youngsters, aged eight to 18, who would be looked after by a team of four support workers, two of whom would sleep there overnight.

"We try and replicate a ‘normal’ family, whatever that looks like,” says a planning statement.

“The children who would live at Dragonfly View would have had experiences within their lives which mean they cannot live with their birth families.

"There would be one handover of staff between 10 and 10.30 every morning. This means there could be four cars on the property at the time, but the access and driveway can accommodate them and this 30-minute window is when there is the least amount of traffic, so it would have minimal impact on the surrounding neighbours.

"The home would have visitors, but no more than a normal household. There would be no structural changes to the home, inside or out.”

The statement concludes: “We want to lose the stigma, created by the tabloids, regarding children’s homes by evidencing that our children do belong in communities where they can have better opportunities than they have previously had.”

The council’s planning officers are currently considering both plans and hope to make a decision or recommendation by Wednesday, April 22.

THE details of many planning applications can be found in public notices advertised by local and regional newspapers. To catch up on all the latest public notices, go to https://publicnoticeportal.uk/