residential children's home to open in our street

[steppemum]

Got home last night and there is a letter through our door from a neighbour.
Apparently there is a planning application in to change the use of a house to a residential childrens' home. The letter was asking for people to put in ojections to the planning application.

I walked past the house today.
We are a quiet road, dead end, the house in question is large with big garden and another house built at the end of the garden (they built it and sold it off) It is close to neighbours but detached. Has its own large drive for parking. The application is for both the main house and the house in the garden to together become a childrens home.

I can't see what the problem is! I am tempted to put in a comment to the planners to say this is a nice quiet, safe road for a kids home.
I am glad that there will be more facilities as our council has a great deal of trouble finding enough foster homes.
We are detached but very close to neighbours, and we never hear a thing.

Am I being naive?
Is there any reason why this house might cause problems?
Honestly I just think this is NIMBY ism. But is that me being naive?

That's sad. Probably would never have his own pet if his childhood was spent in care
I remember being desperate for a pet when I was a child, funny thing was we did have family pets, but I still so desperately wanted (and did get) my own

@Anonym00se I definitely would prefer someone like you for a neighbour than a snob NIMBY type like fairyliz

Why would the average family know the cost of a child in care? Glad I've never needed to know.
Very strange remark from you.

At least you're honest about being selfish.

Thanks so much. I wish you healing and peace.

@ElatedOrGassy are you suggesting anyone wishing to be a parent undergoes genetic testing to ensure they aren't carrying any genes which might cause a child to be disabled, then automatic abortions if scans reveal anything 'undesirable' like DS which might cost the state money.
All Pre-parents would need a vigorous interview process as part of their application, and to put down a large £££ deposit to order to be granted a licence to reproduce.

This may mitigate the chances of children ending up needing care. I think it might be immoral and cost a lot more money though.

Clearly, these posters want "problem children" transported to uninhabited (and uninhabitable, because humans live everywhere that can be lived in) wastelands, housed on prison ships, or dead.

Before anyone shrieks "I didn't say that, I just said not near me!", what do you think would happen if everyone said "not near me"? If no one will accept "problem children" near them, the logical consequences are that they have to go near no one. The only places near no one are uninhabitable wastelands, off-shore floating prisons, and death.

Good for you, OP. There was a similar house down the road when I was a kid, my mum was supportive and encouraged me and my brother to go round with our copies of comics (dandy, beano, Jackie, 2000ad) once a month or so and any Xmas or birthday gifts we didn’t want or use. We used to pop in, quite shy obv cos we were 10, then pop off again. I like to think it made a difference, to feel like they were welcome. X

And that's before we talk about autistic girls with rejection sensitive dysphoria and no social skills to detect and rebuff sexual predators being overrepresented in the care system.

Back in the 1970s my friends parents ran a children's home in a residential road. Whilst I enjoyed the freedom and lack of rules when I visited her there I sometimes found it frightening and I felt sorry for the neighbours.

Even back then there was constant noise. Kids hanging around outside smoking and drinking - not just the residents but all their mates and hangers on. Fights in the street. Police cars coming and going. Alarms going off at all hours. And this was nearly fifty years ago.

Eventually the home was moved to a large building (ex police cadet centre ) in its own grounds, and a good 10 minute walk from any neighbours. It's still there. As a former psychotherapist I have had professional contact with some of the residents and whilst the living conditions sound much more comfortable and less overcrowded nowadays the behavioural problems sound much worse.

And the alternative is not to try to save these trafficked children?

That’s absolutely correct.

And describing kids as “ the worst of the worst “ is disgusting.

I was a child in care.

Erm, no - I’m not suggesting that. Are you reading things that aren’t there?

I’m saying - in relation to a couple of PPs mentioning costs - that this real-life example opened my eyes to the economics of it all. And that’s despite working in local government, where every service has been cut in order to prop up social care and its ever-increasing costs (mostly adult care). Objectively - if anyone is able to be objective - these are massive amounts of money

What I actually think should happen is that councils should be able to increase council tax more than the 10% recently conceded to some local authorities. But obviously that would be massively problematic for some. Like I said, I don’t know what the answer is

I don't think Elated suggested that.

are you suggesting anyone wishing to be a parent undergoes genetic testing to ensure they aren't carrying any genes which might cause a child to be disabled, then automatic abortions if scans reveal anything 'undesirable' like DS which might cost the state money.

As someone autistic who has a DSis with ADHD and two parents who show signs of neurodivergence, eugenics gets a hard "fuck no" from me.

Presumably one where the drug dealers already live and there is a lot of violence so that the traumatised children can be further traumatised and groomed into county lines?

I should add, the worst thing that ever happened in our road involving kids was the night the scout master locked a lad out cos he was late, in the snow. We heard him crying and pleading and so my dad went out and sorted it. What a bastard scout master to do that! He didn’t do it again

Guessing they're worried it might make it harder to sell their houses in future or bring the wrong crowds in.

Unfortunately that was my experience of a privately owned children's home in my area.
Paedophiles cruised the area regularly trying to pick up the poor children in the home. Neither myself or my daughter could walk the streets by day or night, my daughter had to be delivered and collected from school when she had always walked.
Eventually the home closed but it was a terrible couple of years.

I would have felt like you OP, until similar happened in my street. A home for one man with learning needs. It was horrific.

Shouting, screaming, swearing, banging, smashing 24 hours a day. Smoking and drinking in the street. Windows being smashed, cars kicked. Litter everywhere. The resident making nasty threats to us all constantly. We couldn't get more than an hour sleep.

Staff coming and going at all hours, chatting and shouting to each other, having phone conversations in the street in their break in the middle of the night, cars and taxis taking the minimal parking spaces.

And it's a looooonnnng process to get them out once they're in.

Exactly. Middle-class people in naice areas tend to be better at letter-writing and objecting than their working-class counterparts because of better childhood education, more social capital, and intergenerational money. Result: these children's homes end up in deprived areas where there's more chance for the kids to be hoovered into criminality and witness or be subjected to physical and sexual violence.

And you didn't call the police on these child rapists because...?

Yes would much rather this than a nursery. One opened near me in a very residential area and it's so, so noisy. All day, 7am - 6.30pm. Car doors slamming, deliveries at 6am, kids screaming and crying. It's a breakfast, afterschool and holiday club too.

There's a lot of "I'm alright Jack" on this thread...

I agree with this. Turns out I used to live opposite one in my last flat. I didn’t even twig for a couple of years, just thought a family with teenagers lived there. I was surprised when I found out shortly before I moved out. They were no bother at all.

The shocking thing is that children’s care can even be privatised in the first place. These homes should be run by the council and the carers should be paid a decent wage not the pittance that most of them get. Private care homes around us charge around £6000 per week for each child whereas council run homes cost just over half of that.