Knowsley care scheme receives health funding

An £11m extra care housing scheme on the site of a former watch factory in Prescot has received £2.4m from the Department of Health.

Knowsley Housing Trust, part of the First Ark Group, together with partners Knowsley Council and developer lIiad Mason, will build 70 homes in the first phase of the development in Albany Road.

Iliad Mason is a joint venture between Liverpool investors Geoff Mason and David Anastasiou's Iliad Group.

The development, which received planning permission in 2012, will contain a mix of two-, three- and four-bedroom homes, creating the largest extra care development in Knowsley, helping people to live independently with varying levels of care and support on site. It will include 54 apartments in the grade 2-listed factory building and 16 bungalows, of which six will be available for shared ownership. The development will include security, communal gardens, a restaurant, hairdresser and social rooms.

Ian Thomson, executive director of asset management at KHT, said: "This development will address the housing needs of older people and accommodate for a projected increase of 15% in the number of over 50s in Prescot from 2009 to 2019."

The factory was originally the headquarters of the Lancashire Watch Company, which was founded in 1889 and closed in 1910. The 6.75 acre site has since housed light industrial and business operations.

The listed buildings will be retained and redeveloped and the rest of the land will be cleared ready for construction.

The new properties will be available in early 2015. A second phase of development is planned with 62 homes.

Hill Dickinson advises Iliad Mason.