A Kingston nursery run out of the borough’s most polluted air space could be forced to shut down within a year of opening.

Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery opened at the former drug and alcohol Kaleidoscope building in Cromwell Road in July 2014 – but nursery directors did not apply to Kingston Council to change the use of the site because they thought they did not have to.

A retrospective planning application submitted to councillors to continue using the space has now been unanimously rejected – potentially leaving 32 children without a nursery place later this year.

The nursery, located just a stone’s throw from Cromwell Road bus station, is in an area that has the fourth highest levels of air pollution in London, according to a council document.

But Martin Blakebrough, landlord of the site and chief executive of Kaleidoscope, said: “Both Kingston Grammar and Tiffin School are on the same road. Are they going to be moved too?

“If pollution is such a big problem in the area then the council has a duty to tell everyone and do something about it. I’m not aware that the other schools or families that live on that road know about the pollution.”

Mr Blakebrough said Kaleidoscope had been forced to move its operations out of Kingston due to “disagreements” with the council and that the nursery decision may have been “political”.

In November 2014 the House of Commons’ environmental audit committee recommended to protect people and, in particular, children: “New schools, hospitals and care homes must not be built next to air pollution hotspots”.

Councillor Phil Doyle, who sat on the committee that rejected the application, said: “These are young, vulnerable children you are talking about and you just can’t take that risk.”

Monkey Puzzle has a garden, a sensory room, an ICT room and even a sleep room for its children.

When the Surrey Comet visited the nursery last month, manager Mandy Lupton said: “I really can’t wait for Ofsted because then it will be official how well we’re doing here.”

Bob Robinson, director of DPP Planning, who is acting as the agent for the nursery’s application, said the application would be resubmitted.

He added: “We are probably going to be doing some monitoring of the air quality.

“I think everyone agrees it is a good place for a nursery. It is the bus station that is the problem and it’s a problem that must be affecting all of the town centre.”

Monkey Puzzle will remain open during the appeal process, which could take up to a year.

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