What’s planned?

The proposed 80-bedroom care home will provide high-quality residential care and will help address a local need for these facilities.

The proposal will replace the Fountain Beefeater restaurant and Premier Inn hotel to deliver a high-quality 80-bedroom residential and nursing care home to address the local needs of frail and elderly residents.

The proposed scheme is designed to make a positive contribution to the character of the area both in architectural form and interest but also reducing the hardstanding and car parking currently on the site with a landscaped garden tree planting and improving Biodiversity Net Gain across the site.

The proposed building is intended to be “all electric” utilising sustainable energy initiatives including air source heat pumps and PV solar panels with a target of achieving BREAAM excellent.

The proposal will see an overall reduction in car trips compared to the existing use which is also expected to improve air quality locally.

If approved by the Council, the development could be built towards the end of 2027 and be open for use in early 2029.

The illustrative image below shows how the care home could look. View taken from Sixth Cross Road.

Illustrative watercolour image of the proposed site

The care home will meet all relevant statutory requirements and the design standards of the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Key features include:

A central reception hub, café/bistro and hairdressing salon
Themed lounges, day rooms and activity rooms, including a dedicated Namaste room and dementia / memory activity room
A gym and cinema and additional resident amenities
A dedicated dementia care hub on the first floor, and general residential care on the second floor
En-suite wet rooms in every bedroom suitable for assisted use
Private patios for ground floor rooms and shared terrace balconies for upper floor rooms providing access to external space for all residents
Level access throughout, with corridors a minimum of 2m wide and door openings of at least 800mm
Secure, enclosed gardens with sensory planting, seating and clear pathways, particularly supporting residents living with dementia