Council must pay care company after blocking Wolverhampton children’s home move
A council has been told to pay costs to a care provider after ‘unreasonably’ rejecting its plans to open a children’s home.
A government planning inspector has told Wolverhampton Council it must pay full costs to Ashlee Homes Supported Living over the decision to block the conversion of a home in Merridale Road, Wolverhampton, into a residential home for up to three children.
The local authority’s planners said there was no demand for children’s homes in Wolverhampton but a “significant” demand for family housing which led to the rejection.
The decision was then appealed to the government planning inspectors who overturned the ruling saying it was “vague and generalised.”
A separate decision by the planning inspectorate said the council must pay full costs after it had “acted unreasonably” when making the decision.
The inspector also said Wolverhampton Council had failed to evidence the lack of need for children’s homes or the demand for housing.
In a report the inspector said: “The council also opted not to submit a statement of case to defend the reasons for refusal and/or respond to the applicant’s case and the additional evidence provided.
“Combined with the lack of a delegated officer report and any other robust evidence, including comments from the council’s children’s services, the proposals impact is unsubstantiated, and the council’s case is unsupported by objective analysis.
“All in all, the council behaved unreasonably as it failed to provide clear evidence or objective analysis to substantiate their reason for refusal, particularly on appeal.”
When rejecting the application earlier this year, the council had said: “The key issue in this case is the effect of the proposal on the overall supply of housing in Wolverhampton. The property is a good quality recently constructed two-storey detached dwelling house on a prominent corner in an established area close to local amenities and schools and not far from Bantock Park.
"There is currently a significant demand for new houses in Wolverhampton and a significant undersupply of land for new housing as set out in the draft Wolverhampton Local Plan.”
