New specialist secure welfare children’s home proposed for Stubbington

Hampshire County Council has announced plans to develop a new specialist secure welfare facility for children at the Stubbington Study Centre site in Fareham.

The initiative aims to address the growing demand for residential care services that support vulnerable children and adolescents.

To make way for the new proposed home - which if agreed, would be funded by Government – the outdoor learning activities currently provided at Stubbington Study Centre, including residential visits for schools and other groups, would need to cease. There are currently over 100 other providers, used by Hampshire schools, that offer outdoor education opportunities.

The County Council is now inviting schools, other organisations and individuals to share their feedback on proposals to repurpose the Stubbington Study Centre site, with a view to ceasing current activity at the venue from 1 September 2025.

The Government’s Budget Statement in March 2024 included full funding to replace Swanwick Lodge, the County Council’s only specialist children’s home which provides a safe and secure, therapeutic environment for up to 10 of the most vulnerable children from Hampshire and across the country. The setting is now approaching the 30-year mark, over which time the complexity in the needs of the young people staying there has changed significantly. Subject to planning consent, the provision of a new, modern and high-quality home with nearly double the capacity (18 beds) would therefore help to address the challenges in the current building due to its age and layout, while expanding the number of vitally needed specialist placements available both locally and nationally.

To secure the significant funding from Government, the County Council is required to show it can provide a suitable and available location, with the required space, to deliver the new home. The local authority has undertaken a review of potential County Council owned sites, including the existing Swanwick Lodge site; however, this is not sufficiently sized to facilitate a larger home. Having explored all the available options, the County Council has now identified the Stubbington Study Centre site as the most appropriate.  

Councillor Nick Adams-King, Leader of the County Council, said: “Like other local authorities, we are seeing rising demand for highly specialist residential care, growing complexity in children’s needs – and a shortage of suitable placements to support them. We now have a unique, once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a new, state-of-the-art residential home here in Hampshire, enabling our most vulnerable children to benefit from the best possible facilities while also boosting the specialist provision available nationally.

“At the same time, we recognise that Stubbington Study Centre, while not a legal obligation for the County Council to provide, is a much used and popular facility. In potentially repurposing the site, we must ensure that schools and other users can continue to access good outdoor learning opportunities, which we know are so beneficial to children’s development and wellbeing. There is a strong existing market of alternative providers in the local area, and we are keen to understand the views of schools and other users on both the potential benefits and challenges of sourcing outdoor learning activities from these in future. This will help us to plan for and mitigate any impacts that these changes may have on schools, other groups and individuals, ensuring that their needs continue to be met should the site be repurposed for a much-needed new specialist children’s home.”

Schools, other organisations and individuals now have until Monday, 10 February to share their feedback by using the online form on the County Council’s website. Alternatively, responses can be emailed directly to strategicconsultations@hants.gov.uk.