Plans submitted for Bristol's first net zero carbon "later living" community

By Nicky Godding

15 March 2022

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Plans to create Bristol's first net zero integrated retirement community and a new leisure and activity hub for Westbury Park have been submitted to Bristol City Council.

The £85 million proposal for St Christopher's Square will create more than n 100 new homes for older people on a five acre site bordering the Downs.

Access to the site, which has been shut off for many years, will be opened up and the development will be transformed into a centre for local residents and the wider Westbury Park community, and will include a café, an urban village hall, a wellness centre featuring a hydrotherapy pool and gym, plus activity rooms.

A new collection of two storey cottages and four three- to six-storey buildings will provide 122 extra care homes.

St Christopher's Square will be net zero carbon in operation, as well as using low carbon construction techniques and materials. It will also be fossil fuel free,generating up to 25% of its energy needs on-site through solar panels.

The team behind the proposals is made up of ethical investor FORE Partnership.

Basil Demeroutis, Managing Partner, FORE, said: "We are committed to delivering stand-out projects that uphold the highest standards of environmental sustainability, whilst driving significant positive social value. As the first net zero carbon later living development for Bristol and one of the first in the UK, St Christopher's Square will pave the way for a new generation of ultra-sustainable, later living communities for older people across the country."

Henry Lumby, Chief Development Officer of integrated retirement community operator Amicala, said: "We're excited about our plans for St Christopher's Square, which will not only help meet the acute need for specialist extra care homes in Bristol but also provide a new social and leisure hub for Westbury Park, opening up the site and offering a wide range of facilities for residents and local people to enjoy. It will provide older people with high quality and sustainable housing, with the option for wraparound care on hand as needed, reducing the burden on healthcare and social services."

Lucinda Mitchell, Project Director, Socius, said: "Having engaged early and listened carefully to the local community, we have revised elements of our plans to respond to their feedback and are pleased to present a highly sustainable and inclusive scheme which will address the need for high quality specialist later living housing for Bristol."

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.