Residents Relief As Havering Council Refuses Proposed Children’s Care Home In Elm Park
Residents living near Rosebank Avenue in Elm Park are relieved after Havering Council refused a planning application to change a three-bedroom house into a children’s residential care home.
The application, P0685.26, sought permission to change the use of 29 Rosebank Avenue from a three-bedroom dwellinghouse to a Children’s Residential Care Home under Use Class C2, for a maximum of two children with carers.
The proposal attracted objections from local residents, who previously told the Havering Daily that they believed the proposed change of use was unsuitable for the residential road.
One resident who had been involved in raising concerns about the application told the Havering Daily they were “very pleased” with the council’s decision.
The resident who did not wish to be named, said:
“So having spoken to you back in July about our concerns around the planning application made to convert 29 Rosebank from a single dwellinghouse to a care home for up to three children I am very pleased to say that Havering Planners have seen sense and refused the application.”
The resident added that neighbours were delighted with the decision but would remain alert to any future appeal.
“My neighbours and I are so very pleased with this decision although we won’t be resting on our laurels as we are prepared for the application to be passed through the appeal process which we will also fight.”
The resident also said she had submitted Freedom of Information requests as part of residents’ efforts to understand local housing and care requirements.
The supplied figures which they said showed that, at the end of July 2026, 2,385 people were registered as homeless with Havering Council.
The figures supplied are as follows:
242 single men
291 single women
381 single-parent households with one child
465 single-parent households with two children
540 single-parent households with three or more children
466 two-parent families with one or more children
The resident also said that information they obtained showed no children were waiting for a residential care home placement in Havering.
It is also important to distinguish homelessness figures from children’s social care placements, as they are separate areas of council provision.
The refusal now brings the latest stage of the planning application to a close, although residents say they are prepared to respond if an appeal is lodged.
The decision follows weeks of concern from residents, who had previously raised questions about the suitability of the property and the proposed use within the existing residential area.
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