PLANS to develop an old children’s home at a closed school in Thornbury have gone back to the drawing board.

Proposals to change the use of the vacant building at the former Sheiling School have been rejected by planners.

Thornleigh Camphill Communities had submitted an application in hopes of ‘repurposing’ the building - known as Halliers House.

The charity is hoping to open a new residential home at Halliers for adults with learning difficulties.

However, the application was deemed ‘not lawful’ and rejected by South Gloucestershire Council.

Planners said the charity needed to submit a full planning application with more details.

“The principle issue in this application is whether the proposed use can be undertaken without a formal planning application,” a planning officer said.

This week, the charity has told the Gazette it wants to retain the ‘character’ and ‘beauty of the site’.

“Since the closure of Sheiling School, we have been exploring options for how we can continue to use the site for our charitable objectives,” a Thornleigh Camphill Communities spokesperson said.

“As Halliers is designated as a children’s home, one of the first steps is looking at how we repurpose the house to further support our provision for adults.

“It became evident through our recent change of use application that we hadn’t provided the planning authorities with enough information about the site and our plans.

“We are very grateful for the manner in which South Gloucestershire Council has since engaged with us to help us further understand the information that they need.

“We have a shared interest in seeking to retain the character and beauty of the site, while also ensuring that we are doing all that we can to support individuals with learning disabilities to live independently.”

The change of use application was rejected by SGC on October 5.

The update comes after months of rumours on social media that the site could be developed into new homes.

The Sheiling School - which first opened back in 1952 - shut down in July this year.

It taught and supported 30 students aged six to 19 with a range of SEND needs based on the principles of Rudolf Steiner.

At the time, around 70 members of staff were made redundant.

Thornleigh Camphill Communities said the closure was due to rising costs and falling pupil numbers.

The charity runs the Hatch Camphill Community in Thornbury and the Orchard Leigh Camphill Community in Eastington, near Stroud.

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