Caithness campaign group calls Avonlea change of use plan 'premature'
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Highland Council is being urged to think again over a proposed change of use at the former Avonlea children's home in Wick.
Campaign group Encompass Caithness insists a planning application to turn the building in West Banks Avenue into an educational facility is "premature" and has been put forward without consultation.
The group has suggested that engagement with stakeholders could lead to "alternative ideas" for Avonlea "which might include a respite-type facility".
Dan Mackay, a member of Encompass Caithness, spoke at the Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council's monthly meeting. He pointed out that a survey is about to be launched by the group to gather evidence of the need for respite services locally.
Respite care was provided at Thor House in Thurso up until the outbreak of the pandemic. A review was then to be undertaken, but when Avonlea was shut at the end of 2022 youngsters were transferred to Thor House and Highland Council said there was no need for a respite unit at the Thurso premises.
Mr Mackay is a retired care inspector who was the original manager at Thor House when it opened in 1993.
He told community councillors this week: "The main problem with the group, who are basically parents of people with autism or additional support needs or neurodivergent conditions, is that services they could previously access have been closed or withdrawn.
"Children's respite services used to be provided at Thor House but that stopped a few years back, especially when the pandemic came on, then Avonlea transferred all its residents to Thor House.
"Thor House became a long-term residential facility instead of a high-turnover, short-term, short-break respite facility."
The planning application involves internal and external alterations to create an educational facility which would be an "appendix to Wick High School".
Mr Mackay said: "We think it's a bit premature. There has been no consultation that we're aware of, there has been no stakeholder engagement.
"We would hope that will be held in abeyance until we have stakeholder engagement and suggest alternative ideas for Avonlea which might include a respite-type facility.
"We are just about to launch a survey. The purpose of the survey is to ask for hard, factual evidence that will corroborate people's anecdotal stories about their need for but lack of respite services.
"Quite a number of teenagers will be leaving school shortly and they have absolutely nothing to go to.
"Three main issues are respite for children, possibly adults; some kind of day centre provision for adults; and there are multiple stories about children having difficulty at school. We're going to set up subgroups that will better liaise with these folk and try to get better outcomes.
"We're trying to get three things. We want some return to respite care. For adults who are coming out of the system we are trying to get some form of meaningful day centre activities. And we want to campaign for more empathetic educational provision."
Objectors to the planning application say: "The change to an educational facility is premature as there is limited childcare residential provision at Thor House which no longer offers local families much-needed respite care.
"The council has failed to carry out any stakeholder engagement about this change of use.
"There have been no consultations or review of local residential childcare provisions (such as at Thor House and Avonlea) to which third parties could contribute.
"There is growing evidence of shortfalls in social care provision for children with additional support needs, now being recognised by locally elected members.
"The Avonlea facility has a critical role to play in local statutory residential provisions and this should be prioritised before the change of use – which would be best addressed by altering Wick High School."
Avonlea closed in December 2022 after Highland Council had been served with an improvement notice by the Care Inspectorate. The council was given two weeks to make "significant improvement in provision of the service" or its registration of the facility would be cancelled.
Avonlea had opened at a cost of £1.2 million in 2014.
