Chesil Street extra-care scheme approved
A life-changing scheme to provide homes for older people in Winchester has been approved.
Winchester City Council’s Planning Committee (5 February) backed the application to build 52 ‘extra-care’ flats on the site of the Chesil surface car park.
The scheme means that older people, who may have had to live apart in later life as their care needs change, will have the opportunity to live in modern, well-designed flats. The homes will benefit Winchester’s elderly, vulnerable residents for many years, helping to prevent emergency hospital admissions and enable early discharge to reduce bed-blocking.
Cllr Ian Tait, the City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Housing, said:
The debate needs to move on from what the building looks like to what the building is designed to do.
Old age and possibly poor health will affect us all at some stage. This is a life-changing facility that will benefit Winchester’s growing elderly population for years to come.
One response to the consultation on the planning application from a local doctor and Winchester resident summed up the benefits of the scheme. It said:
This is a development that is desperately needed in Winchester city, as its population ages and becomes more vulnerable with the increase of long-term conditions.
Providing mixed facilities for both health and social care is an essential part of planning for the future. I'm extremely encouraged by the integrated approach that this project offers. The siting of the proposal is ideal; it is close enough to the centre of Winchester for access and interest, it is adjacent to the new Community Trust Hub at Avalon House for close integration of health and social support, it is convenient for relative/friend visiting.