Breaston, Derbyshire

The application was to provide secure residential accommodation for Ellern Mede, a specialist provider of treatment for children with eating disorders. It involved refurbishing and extending the building, reducing the number of bedrooms from 18 to 13 to create adequately sized bedrooms as well as space for therapy rooms, medical room and feeding rooms.

The building had last been used as a secure mental health unit and so the principle of the use was established. But the rear half of the building and the garden fell within the Green Belt. We successfully made the case that the need for this specialist facility and providing 20 full time and 20 part time jobs in a variety of roles represented very special circumstances that outweighed the harm to the Green Belt. The planning application was approved under delegated powers.