A city care home boss says a small number of pupils from a school nearby are "terrorising the neighbourhood" and preventing residents from going out at certain times.

Harun Holmes, 39, senior carer and company director of Mount Vernon Terrace, in Waverley Street, said for the past three years there had been a problem with some pupils from the Denewood Academy, in Forest Road West, targeting the site.

Denewood, which was taken over by an academy trust in 2017, works with pupils who have been permanently excluded in a bid to get them back into mainstream education.

It currently has 50 pupils.

Mr Holmes, of Mapperley Top, said objects had been thrown in the past and recalled a door being kicked.

Academy head teacher Matthew McCluskey said a small number of pupils had been identified, and added the academy was working hard to tackle the issue, engaging with the care home.

However, Mr Holmes said: "There's a selective bunch of pupils that tend to walk from the school to the Nottingham High School tram stop to go home.

"They always pass our care home which is just next to the tram stop.

"Basically, we are made a target for some reason or another. To me, it's like the children are always playing a dare with each other.

"'Who's going to chuck a rock at this house? Who's going to kick the door at this house? Who's going to chuck a bottle?' Or something like that."

The care home currently has 12 residents - with the capacity for 16 - and some of the service users have schizophrenia.

Mr Holmes added: "It mainly happens in the afternoon, when the kids are going home from school. It's around 2.55pm until about 3.15pm.

"Sometimes members of staff have to encourage the residents, the service users, not to go out or use the side door just in case they get something thrown at them.

"These children are terrorising the neighbourhood.

"It's stopping service users from going out at certain times when they should be allowed to go out.

Mount Vernon Terrace, in Waverley Street, Nottingham city centre.
Mount Vernon Terrace, in Waverley Street, Nottingham city centre.

"We know we can be at peace when it's the school holidays and the weekend because that's when the school isn't open and there's no children going to that particular school.

"That's how much of a nuisance they are."

Head teacher Mr McCluskey said incidents had occurred sporadically, and added: "The care home has called us a couple of times over the years just to say that there's been a few incidents.

"Whenever they've done that, we've gone up to speak to them to find out what's happened, to get descriptions of these young people.

"Recently as well, we've seen some of their CCTV footage and sometimes we can confirm that it is some of our pupils.

"Recently he has contacted the police a couple of times. 

"We've run assemblies within school, we talked about the local community and how we should be respecting our community.

"We know the two or three pupils who are involved. The majority of the school is not involved.

"It's just two or three individuals who are conducting in this manner.

"We've been engaging with the care home, whenever they've had incidents we've gone up and tried to support them.

"We've sent letters out to parents. We've done assemblies on the community and on how to use the tram properly."

Mr McCluskey said the cohort of the pupils changed "very regularly" at the academy and there had been lengths of time where nothing happened.

He said the local PCSO often came to talk to the young people and added further community projects were planned for the next academic year.

Staff also monitor pupils leaving the school, walking pupils towards the tram stop.

A Nottinghamshire Police spokesman added: "Police are aware of incidents of these nature over a number of months and are working closely with local partners, including the school and care home, on how to tackle anti-social behaviour in the area."