Bolton greenlights Horwich health hub, rejects 43 homes

United Healthcare Developments’ plans for a medical facility off Victoria Road can move forward, while Watson Homes’ application for 35 affordable flats and eight market homes was rejected for a second time.

That was the outcome of Bolton Council’s planning committee meeting on Thursday.

Horwich Health and Wellbeing Hub

“This has been a long time coming,” said Cllr Marie Brady, just before the council voted to approve the plans for the Horwich Health and Wellbeing Hub off Victoria Road.

The long-awaited health centre has been in the works since 2016 but was put on hold because of funding concerns.

Now approved, the three-storey medical facility will be built on the site of the since-demolished Horwich Leisure Centre. Three practices will call the health centre home: Horwich Clinic on Jones Street, Pike View Medical Centre on Albert Street, and The Market Surgery on Chorley New Road. These buildings have all been deemed unfit for purpose.

United Healthcare Developments is delivering the 27,680 sq ft hub, which was designed by PRP Architects. The facility will have treatment and consultation rooms, a waiting area, staff room, and a 100-hour pharmacy.

The project team includes PRP Environmental, PDA Acoustic, Redmore Environmental Consultants, The Transport Consultancy, and Envirotech.

The project’s application reference number with Bolton Council is 14448/22.

• Read more about the Horwich Health and Wellbeing Hub

Stockport-based TADW Architects designed the apartment block for Watson Homes. Credit: via planning documents

Land at Grizedale Close

Bolton Council rejected Watson Homes’ plans to demolish a series of bungalows and build 43 homes at Grizedale Close. The council cited its reasons as an unacceptable loss of biodiversity and harm to the character and appearance of the area due to the scaling of the apartment block.

The decision comes roughly one year after the scheme was initially rejected by the council for similar reasons.

Watson Homes is in the midst of appealing the initial refusal of the scheme. A hearing has been scheduled for 7 December.

The newly rejected application had several changes to the original application, including replacing three two-bed apartments with three one-bed units. Other changes included replacing walk-on balconies with Juliet balconies, relocating windows, and changing the elevation designs.

While the original application had all 43 homes designated as affordable, the new one only had 35 apartments as affordable. The remaining eight houses would have been market homes.

The refusal of the newer application was contrary to the planning officer’s recommendation, which stated that the proposed apartment block “would not be to the detriment of the character and appearance of the area, given neighbouring ground level differences” and that, while there would be a loss of trees, “the proposed development would achieve a biodiversity net gain for habitat and hedgerow units”.

P4 Planning is the planning consultant for the project. TADW Architects designed the scheme.

The application’s reference number with Bolton Council is 13209/22.