Several leading specialist organisations and developers are exploring the potential of bringing new retirement villages to sites which are in need of urban regeneration, but are less likely to be developed, due to issues like existing housing provision, affordable housing targets and land contamination.

According to development consultant David Corrall of Bruton Knowles the growth in demand from the retirement community, and the positive attitude of West Midlands councils keen to promote more regeneration, means that several schemes look very plausible, “We are working with several clients at the moment who provide a range of residential models from small local retirement schemes of circa one and a quarter acres to large three to eight acre retirement villages with extensive nursing care, most of which satisfy any social or affordable housing requirement.  On that basis we are able to consider some West Midlands sites which are important for their strategic location in major urban areas and require redevelopment to trigger or support urban regeneration, but may not be as appealing to mainstream developers.”

We all well understand the phenomenon of our ageing population.  As births have outstripped deaths year on year we now have 10.4m pensioners in this country.  David Corrall explains that not only is the market substantial but it is set to expand, “Recent Help the Aged research of a sample of respondents aged 55 to 64 demonstrated that this baby boomer generation are approaching retirement expecting to be the first NANO’s  – Ninety and Not Out.  There is already a substantial retired community in this country which is only set to expand as our retired generations live longer and demand more from life.

This is why the retirement market has grown substantially in sophistication over the last decade.   ‘Retirement villages’ as they are known, are fantastic communities boasting many on site facilities that any generation would welcome, from restaurants, bars and gymnasiums to meeting rooms and recreational spaces, well tailored public transport connections as well as landscaped gardens and outdoor facilities.  They give residents peace of mind with excellent on-site security and the ability to bring nurse led care to residents when they need it.

They ultimately aim to enable residents to live independently for as long as they can whilst meeting many of their core needs, from medical attention to personal security to entertainment and social wellbeing.  Consequently the retirement village concept is often welcomed by local authorities for adding to and enhancing the social service and health care provision on offer to the community.”

Recognising the growing scale of the market many of these villages now tend to be substantial developments.  David Corrall highlights some examples, “We are looking at several sites in the West Midlands and South West which tend to be around 4 to 5 acres in size and could accommodate anything up to around   200 – 250 units.  They would be developed to offer choice and flexibility in tenure with some units offered freehold and others leasehold depending on the needs of the resident.”

David Corrall explains that the region is already breaking new ground in this market, “ExtraCare (a charitable trust) have many years of experience in providing supported housing for the retirement market, and are no strangers to pioneering new concepts in new locations.  In partnership with Birmingham City Council and Midland Heart they are already progressing plans to bring the retirement village to the city of Birmingham for the first time. 

The £37m New Oscott Retirement Village which has just secured planning consent will bring the concept to the city on a grand scale with over 260 homes and a wide range of facilities.  It is the first in a series of schemes which will involve an investment of well over £100m, and ultimately will deliver over 1000 homes for the retirement community.  It is a model that many other urban communities across the West Midlands could well benefit from.”

David Corrall concludes, “It demonstrates that the concept of urban regeneration is growing in diversity and sophistication.  It is no longer just the main stream mixed use scheme that is under pinning sustainable redevelopment.  Specialist markets and providers have an increasing role to play.  They are often able to tackle sites which would otherwise prove less appealing to the main stream developer and at the same time satisfy a more sophisticated and demanding section of our population.   If the NANO’s are right in a few decades time we may even hav