Bearwood House could become a tuition center for up to 20 schoolchildren

A house could soon be turned into a private tuition center under new plans. BMH Tutors has sought permission from Sandwell Council to turn the Victorian house in St Mary’s Road, Bearwood, into a “private tuition academy” for up to 20 older children studying for GCSEs and A-Levels.

The house, opposite St Mary’s Church, just off busy Bearwood High Street, would sit next to Bearwood Dental Care and Play House Day Nursery. BMH Tutors already runs an academy in upscale Handsworth Wood.

Opening hours would be 14:00 to 20:00 on weekdays, 9:00 to 18:00 every Saturday and 10:00 to 18:00 on Sundays and during half term and other school holidays. A statement included in the application said the proposed conversion would not be “noise generating” and would be comparable to a “small school library”.

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“There is no need for parking for our students, so no parking spaces will be occupied,” the statement said. “Given the good transport links (bus stop opposite the property) there will be minimal car use for transport. “We will ensure a smooth transition of students by minimizing movement and maintaining adequate spaces to allow students to depart and arrive individually rather than all together.

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“This, combined with two to three hour time slots where there will be no coming and going, will greatly reduce any disturbance to neighbours.” A plan to turn the two-and-a-half-storey Victorian house into a place of worship “for up to 20 people” was rejected by Sandwell Council in 2010. An appeal to the government’s planning inspector in a bid to have the decision overturned was also refused.

The council said the extra noise and the “comings and goings” of worshipers meant the plans could not be sustained. The ground floor of the ‘home’ in St Mary’s Road was converted into a large prayer hall in the late 2000s, despite claims that the building was only used as housing, with the council saying it was only notified that the work had taken place after May many complaints from neighbors.

It was claimed the house in St Mary’s Road was only used for “quiet meditation and prayer”, but neighbors said they were disturbed by “singing and ringing of bells” from more than 20 people who were claimed to be at capacity. The “loud” songs also disturbed the children from the adjacent kindergarten during their sleep.

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