Gang activity fears as plans for Doncaster children's home take next step

A planning application to convert a house into a children’s care home in a Doncaster village is set to be debated due to concerns over crime in the area.

Doncaster Council’s planning committee is set to debate plans to change the use of a dwelling in Denaby Main into a residential children’s care home next Tuesday, April 30.

If approved, the property on Hickleton Street would be occupied by up to three young people aged between nine and 18. Care staff will be on-site at all hours to support the residents, although they will not live at the property.

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The application has been brought to the planning committee at the request of Conisbrough ward councillor Nigel Ball. Cllr Ball raised concerns over the proposed location, stating that it could lead to the young residents being exposed to organised crime and gang activity.

It comes three years after a boy and two men were found guilty of murdering a vulnerable man on the street. Jerry Appicella, 51, was walking home from the nearby Go Local when he was attacked by the group in 2019, with his sexuality as a gay man and vulnerability cited as potential motives.

Two letters of opposition to the application stated that gang activity continues to take place on the street, with concerns over the safety of young and vulnerable residents.

An additional two representations were received citing concerns over loss of privacy, noise, parking issues, additional anti-social behaviour and decrease in property value.

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