A CONTROVERSIAL bid to convert a suburban house into a home to assess the parenting skills of troubled single mothers is set to be rejected at the second time of asking.

Gryffin House Limited want to take over the property on Moorcroft in Lower Darwen.

The firm submitted a planning application in August to use in the house up to five families at a time for 12 weeks to perform ‘Residential Parenting Assessments’.

Blackburn with Darwen Council’s planning committee was due to reject the scheme when it met last month but the decision was deferred to consider further evidence submitted by the applicant Raeece Sulaman-Butt rebutting evidence from the borough's children's service department.

More than 20 nearby residents supported by Blackburn South and Lower Darwen ward councillors John and Jacquie Slater turned up to the meeting to oppose the proposal.

Now the scheme, which has generated more than 20 objections, is to be debated at the planning committee meeting on Thursday next week.

Officers have prepared a new report which recommends refusal.

It says: "The application was deferred at December’s meeting to allow time for officers to provide further clarity, in consultation with children’s services, around the effect on public services.

"The council’s children’s services' consultee has offered an objection that the local authority (LA) area cannot support the likely impacts arising on public service provision.

"Children’s services assert that there is no demand for the proposal in the borough.

"Currently, the borough benefits from two facilities; Maryvale and Phoenix Family Care. These are considered sufficient to cater for the borough needs.

"Children’s services acknowledge the issue of importing unwarranted need into the borough and the impact arising on wider public service provision and budgets under such circumstances.

"The proposal is considered to pose a significant risk to the extent that the quality and availability of existing public services could deteriorate.

"Whilst the applicant’s rebuttal is acknowledged, it is considered that no substantive evidence is submitted to demonstrate local demand for the proposal.

"Taking all of the above into account, it is considered that the necessary infrastructure, facilities and services do not currently exist, nor can they be provided via the development.

"Nor does the application demonstrate a need for the development arising from the requirements of people ordinarily residing in the LA area.

"The development is of a nature and scale with resources unlikely to be available to support people ordinarily residing in the LA area and it would lead to an unwarranted increase in the level of demand for public support services to the extent those services would deteriorate for existing users."