WORK is under way to build a new children’s home in Leicester, boosting the number of council-run placements available for children and young people in care.
Leicester City Council has commissioned the new £1.8m home, with backing of £800,000 from the Department for Education.
Located in the west of the city, it will be the first children’s home to be constructed in Leicester for more than 40 years.
The home will provide purpose-built accommodation for six young people, between the ages of eight and 17, offering five bedrooms with ensuite facilities as well as two semi-independent living flats, a kitchen, lounge, games room and sleeping quarters for staff.
The build is the latest phase of work by the city council to expand its in-house provision of places for children and young people who can’t live with their birth families.
Work was recently completed to convert two council-owned houses in the south of the city into a children’s home, providing residential care for five young people.
The two projects mean the city council will be able to care for more children and young people in-house, increasing the number of council children’s homes from six to eight, caring for up to 48 children and young people.
Deputy city mayor for social care, Cllr Sarah Russell, said: “We are determined to provide the best possible care for the children and young people we look after. Most children who can’t live with their birth families live with foster carers, but this isn’t right for everyone, and increasing demand for children’s social care services in recent years means there has been a significant rise in demand for residential children’s homes. This is the case across the country.
“Providing more children’s homes within the city means children and young people can continue to receive support within their communities rather than them moving away from Leicester. This continuity and stability can be very important to children experiencing major disruption to their lives.
“There are also long-term financial advantages to providing more places ourselves.”
The new home will feature a range of energy efficiency measures including roof-mounted photo-voltaic panels, and air source heat pumps. It will also serve as a hub for training for social care staff, foster carers and other professionals.
Leicester City Council has appointed Loughborough-based Scope Construction as its development partner for the ambitious project, following a competitive tendering exercise.
Maz Patel, Managing Director of Scope Construction said: “We are delighted to have been appointed by Leicester City Council to deliver their first new build children’s home for many years.
“It is great to be breaking ground on this latest project. Scope and our local supply chain take pride in the work we do and we aim to deliver a first-class project for the client and the local community. We look forward to continuing our strong working relationship with the council.”
Construction is expected to take around one year to complete, with the new children’s home likely to open in late-2025.
Photo: Representatives of Leicester City Council, Scope Construction, A+G Architects and BSP Consulting join Leicester City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby (front left) and Maz Patel of Scope Construction (right) for the groundbreaking ceremony at the site of Hillview Children's Home.