Member Article

Green light for £8m Cumbria extra care housing development

Plans to transform redundant industrial land into high-quality housing for elderly residents and those living with dementia have been approved by Copeland Borough Council.

Maple Grove Developments, a division of the Eric Wright Group, is developing the extra care scheme on behalf of Impact Housing Association.

The £8m development, on Coach Road, comprises of 56 one and two-bedroom apartments and four two-bedroom bungalows.

Built to high standards with quality fixtures and fittings, the homes comply with the government’s Housing our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation (HAPPI) report and boast enhanced natural light and space, communal areas and energy efficiency provisions.

The properties were designed by Lancaster-based Harrison Pitt Architects and feature a mixed colour scheme to complement the town’s surrounding landscape.

It is expected that construction works will begin in early 2015.

Andrew Dewhurst at the Eric Wright Group, said: “The extra care scheme has received overwhelming support from the local community. The planning consent is an important step in bringing about the delivery of this much needed facility.”

Keith Dobson, director of assets and homes at Impact Housing, added “We want to continue developing housing for older people so that we can give them the opportunity to stay in the communities they know with appropriate support in housing that is designed specifically with their needs in mind.”

Richard Wooldridge, architect at Harrison Pitt Architects, concluded: “Designing housing for older people and those living with dementia is a specialist area that requires significant expertise, so we’re pleased to have been chosen to work on such a valuable project and that our designs have the full backing of the local community.”

Known predominantly for its construction function, the Eric Wright Group is also the lead partner in the ‘Sapphire’ consortium, a group appointed to build and maintain 390 extra care apartments at Stoke-on-Trent in a circa £100m project.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .