Plans for new children's home in Old Weston are blocked

A council has blocked plans to convert a house in a "remote" village into a children's home.

Care home provider Esland North Limited applied to repurpose the five-bedroom property in Old Weston, near Huntingdon.

The company said the rural setting would benefit young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

Huntingdonshire District Council rejected the plans, saying the village had too few services to support them.

Esland North sought permission to convert the house for children aged between eight and 18, claiming a rural setting could provide a "safe space to move on".

"Children in care are, by their very nature, highly vulnerable to people who wish to exploit and abuse and unfortunately the risk of this is significantly greater in urban environments than rural environments," the company said.

"Not only does this provide safety and security for these children, but the more peaceful and tranquil setting can be beneficial in supporting time for reflection and recovery."

The district council received objections from Brington Parish Council and 26 people.

Planning officers said in a report: "Within the village is a pub, church and village hall and two bus stops with a very limited bus service to Huntingdon.

"It is noted that there is no school, no doctors and no shop within Old Weston.

"Taking into account the very limited bus service that only allows for a two hour window stop off in Huntingdon and the fact it only runs during the weekdays, it provides a limited level of accessibility to shops, services, community facilities and social networks which appears to be inappropriate to the needs of the intended occupiers (children)."

The officer said it was an "unsuitable location" and the application was rejected.

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