Development Plans Submitted For Bath Homebase Site

Guild Living has submitted plans to build retirement apartments on the former Homebase site in Bath.

The store, which sits on Pines Way in the city, is still trading despite initial plans to close the store in November 2018.  In October 2019, it was confirmed that the demolition of the site would take place no earlier than 3rd February 2020.  The planning application is currently showing as ''pending consideration", therefore no further updates on a potential closing date have been revealed.

Guild Living intends to develop and manage a mixed-use scheme which will feature 317 residential apartments, alongside health, wellbeing and leisure facilities including a cinema, gym, nursery, restaurants and shops, among others, allowing residents to maintain their independence.

A spokesperson for the developer said: "Guild Living’s on-site staff will also curate social events and activities.

"The scheme’s design has been shaped to encourage interaction between the different age groups and drive footfall in support of local businesses, whilst creating a series of connected walkways and open green spaces for everyone to enjoy.

"The ambition of the development is to support the NHS through the inclusion of transitional beds and step-down services – enabling hospital patients to staircase back into their homes – reducing the demands on the local NHS.

"Crucially, Guild Living’s development has the potential to free-up much-needed family housing, contributing towards Bath and North East Somerset Council's five-year housing supply.

Eugene Marchese, co-founder and director at Guild Living, said: “We cared for people differently in the past because we either lived together or lived around the corner, we used to be able to pop-in and engage with older people in the family.

"Nobody - no matter their age - wants to live in isolated villages or feel like they exist in a silo.

"There is a severe lack of quality housing for those entering what I would call the 'third age', so it comes as no surprise that so few people live in dedicated later living homes.

"By building these communities in vibrant, urban locations, creating facilities that everyone can use and providing the care and support when it is needed, we can drastically improve the quality of life for our elderly."

Source : Insight DIY Team

For all the very latest news and intelligence on the UK's largest home improvement and garden retailers, sign up for the Insight DIY weekly newsletter.