Scheme submitted for new care home in Newbury

Plans have been submitted for a new 67-bed residential care home in Newbury.

Cheshire-based Muller Property Group is hoping to build the home on the south side of the A4 near B&Q, on a site formerly part of the garden of the adjacent Ham Mill.

The site is currently comprised of an overgrown disused garden, tennis court and scrub vegetation, with trees and hedgerows around the perimeter.

It can be accessed from a local road serving a handful of nearby dwellings, Ham Manor marina to the west and is bounded by the River Kennet to the south.

The building will be three storeys featuring recreational spaces for guests – as well as a lounge, dining room, cinema and activity room, a hair and nail salon and landscaped gardens.

Muller said the application had been submitted to West Berkshire Council, but it has not yet been validated, meaning it has not yet appeared on the council’s planning portal.

Muller Property Group chief executive Colin Muller said: “There is a significant shortage of specialist care accommodation for the elderly in the town of Newbury in its entirety and its surrounding rural areas.

“There is a demand for 696 en-suite care bedrooms to serve the elderly population, and an undersupply of 213 en-suite bedrooms.

“This is a shortfall which exceeds the current pipeline developments within the area.

“This statistical undersupply is mirrored across the wider district pointing towards a considerable shortfall exceeding 500 en-suite bedrooms.

“The opportunity to redevelop the site will provide a high-quality, up-to-date, purpose-built care scheme with facilities that will assist in offsetting growing need of residential accommodation offering care and well-being to the elderly people with frailty issues.”