Bradford & District | Archive | 2005 | October | 21
From the archive, first published Friday 21st Oct 2005.
A former nursing home in Nab Wood is to re-open as a special school for boys with behavioural and emotional difficulties.
The first pupils, referred from local authorities and all aged between eight and 16, are expected to arrive at the Old Gables in New Close Road within weeks.
But news of the change of use has been greeted with suspicion by some residents who are angry they were not consulted by the Old Gables owners, Bradford-based Czajka Care Group.
Because the nursing home already had planning permission for residential care, it did not need to seek a change of use for the boarding school and only needed approval from the Department for Skills and Education, which was received two weeks ago.
Shanti Thakker, from the Nab Wood Together residents' action group, said: "I find it hard to believe there was no need to get planning permission for a change of use. For people living next to it, the change from living next to elderly residents and then suddenly a bunch of young boys is blatantly obvious.
"Residents need to be reassured. Surely it would have been courteous of the owners to keep us informed of their plans."
And ward councillor Martin Love said: "It would have been useful if the community had been told what was happening."
Old Gables proprietor Konrad Czajka, who owns six other nursing, care and retirement homes in the district as well as a home care service,said today that people in Nab Wood had "nothing to worry about".
And he has agreed to host an open day soon.
Mr Czajka said: "There will be no young offenders at the Old Gables. The boys all have emotional and behavioural difficulties caused by something they have experienced in their lives.
"Turning the Old Gables into a school has not been hushed up, it was our intention to invite people to an open day once we knew everything was going ahead. We've only just had confirmation from the DfES that it's all going through.
Head of School Luke Smith said the boys would have round-the-clock care from teaching staff and a team of day and night care workers.
A DfES spokesman said the Old Gables had undergone pre-registration check by Government inspectors and final paperwork was now being completed so it could operate legally as a special school.
He also confirmed it would not be a school for young offenders.
© Newsquest Media Group 2008