Applethwaite advances Lancs senior living

Eric Wright’s residential arm wants to deliver a 72-bed care home and 48 bungalows for over-55s off Preston Road in Grimsargh, looking to update an earlier consent.

In plans now lodged with and validated by Preston City Council, the developer outlined its refreshed intentions for the 11.8-acre site.

Planner Smith & Love  is advising the applicant. Also on the professional team are Woodcroft Design, Cassidy + Ashton, Eddisons, Ascerta, Envirotech, Sutcliffe, TACE, Award Energy and REFA.

Cushman & Wakefield provided viability advice.

Applethwaite’s plans are for four one-bedroom bungalows, and 22 each of two and three bedrooms.

The site, around 1.5m from Junction 31A of the M6, is undeveloped and lies on the western edge of Grimsargh. Seddon Homers is delivering the Orchard Manor development close by.

Consent had previously been given to the applicant for a care home, 60 apartments and 20 bungalows in 2019, with reserved matters granted for access in 2021.

Preliminary work had started, making those consents extant, meaning the consents remain in place as a fallback should this altered scheme not secure approval.

Applethwaite has significant experience with bungalow-led schemes. Credit: planning documents

Why the change? Since the original consent, Erc Wright has formed a focused care division called Wrightcare: this will be Wrightcare’s third development.

Applethwaite meanwhile has become something of a specialist in delivering bungalows, an increasingly popular mode of housing of an aging population. The firm has delivered a range of age-restricted developments in Lancashire over the last decade, as outlined in Smith & Love’s planning statement.

The care home will provide 72 en-suite bedrooms across two floors, with associated communal lounges, kitchens, dining rooms and a central hub area containing a library, games room, private bar and cinema room.

The application can be viewed on Preston’s planning portal with the reference 06/2024/0495.