A CARE centre for children with learning disabilities which divided a rural community has opened.

The Lilacs, in Castleside, near Consett, has been transformed into the £500,000 Interact Care home. The residential unit will house up to four youngsters with complex learning disabilities, such as severe autism.

Proposals for the centre split the village of Castleside when they were put forward in August last year.

Twenty letters of objection and a petition with 54 signatures citing parking and traffic problems were submitted to the planning authority, Derwentside District Council.

But supporters of the plans claimed traffic issues were a smokescreen, saying objectors had unfounded fears about the centre housing unruly or criminal children.

Interact's managing director, Shaun Joyce, said: "None of these children have engaged in criminal activity or been kept in custodial facilities.

"They are children with very complex learning disabilities."

The centre employs 24 highly specialised staff, to provide one-to-one care for children who are diagnosed with disabilities such as Down's syndrome, autism or epilepsy.

It is owned by Mr Joyce, his wife, Sam, and mother-in-law, Linda Graham, and has projected a turnover of £800,000 in its first year.

The only specialist, 24-hour facility of its kind in County Durham, it has already attracted widespread interest from social services departments and health and education authorities across the UK.

Mr Joyce, a specialist nurse from Shotley Bridge, said: "I have worked in this field for many years and realised there was limited or no resources out there.

"These children need very specialised care and before we opened, you had to go out of County Durham to find it.

"We only put one advert out and have had 50 referrals from across the country."

One child, an 11-year-old boy, is already at the centre and Mr Joyce is selecting three others. They are expected to all be aged between eight and 12 and will stay at the centre until they are 18.

"Once we have chosen a child, we would expect them to be with us for about seven or eight years," said Mr Joyce.

He secured £400,000 from the Bank of Scotland's corporate banking arm to set up the business.

It comprises a loan to cover the cost of the premises, an overdraft for the initial start up period, and asset finance for the cost of a number of specialist mobility vehicles.