A CHILDREN’S residential home has been given planning permission in Swansea, with the applicant’s agent claiming there was “a worrying lack” of such accommodation for vulnerable young people.
The property, in Pontarddulais, had normal residential use but will now be for children in care, subject to registration with regulator Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW). It’ll be for a maximum of three young people, plus a live-in member of staff.
A planning statement submitted to Swansea Council on behalf of the private care provider said young people living there would be supervised full-time. The home, it said, was unlikely to cause any noise or disturbance over and above a normal residential property.
The planning statement added: “There is major demand for this type of residential accommodation in Swansea. There is currently a worrying lack of such accommodation which is putting vulnerable children at risk.”
There were 26 objection letters to the application. People in the area said they were worried about potential anti-social behaviour, loss of privacy and parking problems, among other things.
Council planning officers said the proposed children’s home would not result in unacceptable noise or disturbance, but they did impose a condition restricting the number of occupants to three, plus the member of staff.
The officers noted the concerns about potential anti-social behaviour but said no evidence had been submitted that it would be caused by young people living in the home. Such behaviour, they said, was “not an inevitable consequence of a children’s home” but rather a question of individual behaviour and appropriate management.
Officers said the separate registration process would examine the intended use of the property more fully. According to CIW there are 19 registered children’s homes in Swansea, with capacity for 79 young people. A small proportion of these homes are run by the council; most are owned by private operators.
Councillors on a scrutiny panel heard earlier this month that some operators were withdrawing from the sector because of a Welsh Government plan to eliminate private profit. As of April 1, 2026, any new children’s residential homes in Wales will have to register as not-for-profit.
