ENFIELD COUNCIL - Planning Permission: Nursery children not given access to their garden because they make 'noise'?!

[Ozlemaksu]

Dear parents

Our children at Nursery On The Green are being denied access to their garden by heartless individuals at Enfield Council, because the local authority deems the children are causing a nuisance by playing and having fun whilst enjoying out door play! What are children supposed to do? That's how they learn and it's all to important for little people to throughly engage in playing in their own garden.

Enfield Council, are recommending a refusal to the planning application, which was to secure permanent use of the garden. The children only had temporary consent to use the garden previously. We are seeking justice for those children who do not have a voice or standing to represent themselves - no pun intended.

It is fundamentally incorrect when children attending nursery, some 50 hours per week, are denied use of their garden. They can not exercise, learn and develop their most basic needs. The children attending NURSERY ON THE GREEN, are the most pleasant and well behaved children around. As a parent, I am honoured and very proud of the people providing an outstanding care for the most precious little people of our lives, they are all first class teachers and they provide a first class service.

Please support our cause to get the planning application granted. There will be a consultation on the 24th September 2013 at the Enfield Civic Centre Conference Room at 7.30pm. Please join us in our search for securing those children with some use of their garden.

We have launched an online petition to lend our support to those children which are affected! What is next, are they going to stop children from playing in schools and in parks also?! This is absurd. Please take five minutes to sign our petition and let's all stand up for our children.

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Thank you.

[Cindy34]

Does seem a bit odd, though don't know the area so the garden may be very close to other properties, the building may have been residential not commercial property so change of use consent may have had limitations placed on it, plus there may be local public space available. Nurseries do not need a garden, they need access to outdoor space so that can be a local park.

Good luck with the campaign. Planning committee will need to take everyone's views into account, within the constraints of the planning rules.

[Cindy34]

Sorry, having looked at the planning apps and location plans, plus Google Maps, I agree with the council.

• planning permission for the nursery was originally refused.
• variation to consent did get approval, though I see a miss match between max number of children planning permitted (24) vs Ofsted registration (47), plus consent did not include use of garden.
• temp consent of garden use has been tried.
• 12 objections to continued use of the garden. very close residential properties.
• there is a public open space within a very short walk, 1 road to cross.

Children have a right to play but they don't have to do it on site, it can be at another location. I know of several nurseries who have no garden, they use a local park. Sure that may not be ideal but not all buildings have a garden and where there is a garden, noise levels do need to be taken into account.

With the open space down the road, I don't see how you will be able to appeal the decision (once it is made).

Sorry, on this occasion I feel town planning have it right.

For those wanting a look at the planning apps: search enfield planning portal using: en2 6nf postcode.

[OrangeOpalFruit]

It seems pretty unfair on the children who attend the nursery. While I would be annoyed if a nursery opened up next door to me I do think that children should be outside as much as possible. Ideally I suppose they shouldn't grant planning permission at all for nurseries in buildings without usable outdoor space, because I don't think such premises are really suitable for the purpose.

[BoulevardOfBrokenSleep]

It's not unreasonable to be making noise in the daytime, surely?

They're not going to be out squealing on the trampoline at 2am....

[Willyswife]

I am shocked at Cindy23's response - would you not have schools in residential areas? This premises is a commercial property, it was originally built as a meeting hall for the Ancient Order of Foresters and used to hold parties, wedding receptions etc. The application requests that children (all under 4 years) have access for a total of three hours a day - maximum number of children at any one time 9. With a school playground less than 220m away and a total of 470 pupils - will 9 children make a difference to neighbouring properties - SURROUNDED BY BIGOTS!!!/emo/te/5.gif

[Willyswife]

SORRY THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN CINDY34! The nursery is also closed from 6pm each evening and no one around at weekends. You could potentially have a couple of semi's on this site and then have screaming unsupervised children in the garden all day, every day , evenings and weekends - I know what I would rather have.

[TenthMuse]

OP, as if happens I live in Enfield just round the corner from the nursery and saw the article in the local paper. To be honest, I was really shocked by the small-mindedness and self-interest of those who have placed these objections.

I'm also a primary teacher, and I completely agree with you about the importance of children having easy access to outside space - it's crucial to early education, and while I'm well aware that there is usuable open space nearby (I live opposite it!), it won't be anywhere near as secure and will be logistically more difficult to use on a regular basis.

I fail to see how a maximum of nine children playing outside for a few hours a day would create an intolerable amount of noise. And, anyway, surely the sound of children playing is infinitely preferable to traffic, barking dogs, car alarms and any of the other noises you would expect to experience living in a London suburb? And I would have thought most people would be out and about (at work, shopping etc) for at least some of the time the outside space was being used - if the application were for evenings/weekends the situation would obviously be different.

Sadly, there is an element in our society that is somewhat intolerant and ambivalent towards children. Being a local resident, and knowing the area well, I suspect that there are some people living nearby who have little else to do other than writing letters to the council about things that irk them (indeed, I am acquainted with a couple of them!).

Suffice to say, I've signed the petition and will encourage friends who live locally to do the same.