A 70-bed care home will be built on land by Hundreds Farm House in Westgate after gaining approval from Thanet council.
The site has previous approval for a care home but Lawrence Baker Limited and Avante Care have redesigned the facility after buying the site and reviewing the plans.
Avante Care & Support is a registered charity supporting some 1,000 older people through their registered nursing and dementia care homes and home care services. It is a not for profit organisation, with specialist dementia care homes providing support services for people living with dementia.
Home Care and Support services already delivers care at home in Faversham, Sheerness, Sittingbourne and the London Borough of Bexley.
In documents lodged by RDT Architects on behalf of the care provider it says alterations included the number of bedrooms being reduced from the 75 originally proposed so more day spaces could be included.
The Westgate care home is to include garden spaces, flexible lounge/activity spaces ad communal spaces such as café, cinema and break out areas.
Twenty-four car parking spaces will be provided including two designated disabled access. Access for staff to the site will be encouraged through alternative sustainable methods to include walking, cycling, use of public transport or to share lifts with other staff members. The development will include 4 active Electric Vehicle Charging Points (EVCP) on site.
Objections were received from four residents and Westgate Town Council, citing concerns: – including potential flooding onto land due to change in levels, overlooking, and a loss of biodiversity and trees on the site.
New planting within the site of 24 trees will take place, compensating for nine that will be removed, and landscaping measures have been put forward to deal with overlooking and land levels.
Nature measures have previously included translocation of 194 slow worms (including juveniles) to a receptor site in 2019, and a further two slow worms were moved in 2022 to the same site at Linksfield Town Green.
Bats were also present within the site. Kent County Council recommended a safeguarding condition in relation to new external lighting and bat boxes are being provided.
The decision notice granting permission g=for the care home was published by Thanet council yesterday (January 30).
