Plans to transform a former student hall into emergency shelter have secured approval from Chichester District Council, despite objections from roughly 200 local inhabitants.
The initiative to repurpose Pinewood House on Answorth Close for 51 roofless individuals as temporary lodging received endorsement from the planning panel on Wednesday, April 15.
The local authority bears a statutory responsibility to assist those presenting as homeless or facing imminent loss of their home. Currently, 118 single adults occupy transitional accommodation, representing 67 percent of the district’s homelessness workload.
The council requires additional capacity urgently to house vulnerable people, and the three-storey Pinewood House has sat empty for more than four years.
While opponents grasped the context, they articulated multiple concerns.
Local resident John Wormald contended the objection was not simply selfish neighbourhood resistance. He warned that the cramped sleeping quarters, narrow corridors, security cameras and continuous on-site staffing would establish an atmosphere comparable to something between a school dormitory and a correctional facility.
Mr Wormald added that the setting would prove demoralising, likely to generate problematic behaviour that would spread into the surrounding neighbourhood.
Peter Harris, chairing the Graylingwell Park Residents Association, asked for the scheme to be deferred to allow the council to obtain specialist advice regarding the project’s feasibility and safety.
Sue James, managing the Chichester Community Development Trust, voiced concern about the severely detrimental impact the change would have on nearby Graylingwell Chapel, which operates as a community venue attracting families with young children.
She noted concerns that misconduct by certain Pinewood residents in their facilities would deter other visitors and therefore reduce income on which the Trust depends to fund the Chapel’s activities and Havenstoke Park.
Officers clarified that the establishment would house those who are homeless through no fault of their own, such as individuals unlawfully removed from their homes or escaping domestic abuse, rather than those who choose to sleep on the streets. The council will assess eligibility, and none of the residents will be classified as requiring intensive support.
Male and female occupants will occupy separate floors, with entry managed through key cards. Residents will share dining spaces, kitchens, lounges, washing facilities and toilets across the three levels.
Hannah Burton (Lib Dem, Midhurst) described how remarkably easy it can be for working people to lose their accommodation.
Addressing the difficulties of surviving on basic wages while being unable to build savings, she observed that missing a single month of work is enough to find oneself without a home, finished, without alternatives.
Donna Johnson (Green & Local Alliance Group, Sidlesham & Selsey North) argued the location would provide a safe environment for those in need.
While acknowledging it represented an imperfect answer, she pointed out it was preferable to placing people in hotels outside the district, far removed from their employment and social connections.
The proposal was carried with eight votes in support and one opposed.