A Dudley Council enforcement notice ordering a children’s home in Bilston to stop operating has been upheld following an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.
The property, a two-story semi-detached house on Maslin Drive, had been used by TS Healthcare Limited as a care facility without securing the necessary change of use planning permission. Upon receiving the enforcement notice, the company contested that the premises were providing supported living rather than functioning as a care home, claiming no change of use approval was required.
However, the Planning Inspectorate determined that carers did not reside at the property but instead offered full-time care on a rota basis. This arrangement meant the home did not operate as a single household where children and carers live together, thereby constituting a material change of use from a residential dwelling.
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TS Healthcare also argued that the property’s activity was indistinguishable from a normal residential home and at the time of appeal, only one resident was living there. Nevertheless, prior evidence showed that up to three residents with complex needs had required 24-hour care.
The decision report highlighted complaints from neighbors regarding noise, disturbance, and anti-social behavior arising from residents, staff visits, and occasional police interventions—including one incident where emergency services responded after a resident climbed onto the garage roof. These disturbances, often occurring late at night, exceeded what would be expected in a typical family home environment.
While acknowledging that any family home can generate some noise, the Inspectorate concluded the volume and nature of disruptions linked to the property were significantly higher than that of a domestic household, justifying the enforcement action to cease the children’s home operations.