Plans to demolish Fareham’s Henry Cort Community College buildings for secure children’s home are revealed
The school is due to move to Whiteley next September
New details have been revealed about plans to demolish buildings at a Hampshire school to make way for an 18-bed secure children’s home.
Hampshire County Council is proposing the new home at The Henry Cort Community College in Fareham to replace the almost 30-year-old, ten-bed Swanwick Lodge.
A new environmental report has revealed more about the plans, including that it will have space for 18 children, around 120 full-time equivalent staff, secure walls and fencing of up to 5.2 metres.
The council expects to submit plans for the demolition of the Henry Cort buildings by the end of 2026, with work set to begin between July and September next year.
A full planning application for the new secure children’s home is expected to follow between October and December 2027.
The new home would include classrooms and spaces for recreation and communal activities, as well as landscaped outdoor areas.
Henry Cort Community College remains open, but staff and pupils are due to move to a new school in North Whiteley from September 2027, making the site available for redevelopment.
The plans come after an earlier proposal to use Stubbington Study Centre for the replacement home was rejected by the council’s cabinet following public opposition.
Henry Cort Community College was later identified as the council’s preferred site.
Swanwick Lodge is one of only 13 specialist secure children’s homes in England and provides care and support for vulnerable children who have experienced significant trauma and abuse.