Old care home sale agreed

A FORMER care home in Henley that has been derelict for eight years is finally set to be sold.

Chilterns End was closed by the Orders of St John Care Trust in 2016 when it moved to the new 64-bed Chilterns Court care centre, next door to Townlands Memorial Hospital.

Oxfordshire County Council, which owns the freehold of the 2.37-acre site, has now agreed to sell it to Nicholas King Homes, subject to the firm receiving planning permission to develop it.

The site has been allocated 27 homes in the joint Henley and Harpsden neighbourhood plan but the Henley Standard understands the developer will look to build a smaller number.

Nicholas King is expected to submit an application to South Oxfordshire District Council, the planning authority, imminently.

Representatives for the firm have already held a private meeting with members of Henley Town Council to hear feedback on its proposed plans.

The proposed sale does not include the neighbouring premises in Chilterns Close, home of the Chiltern Centre.

The charity, which provides care for disabled young adults, wants to sell its site to help finance a move to a new £3.5 million building at Highlands Park, off Greys Road.

Its trustees have been embroiled in a legal wrangle with the council over a right of way over its current site, although some progress has been made. They hope to offer its land to any potential bidder for the Chilterns End site.

Town and county councillor Stefan Gawrysiak said that while he was pleased the site is set to be sold, he would like to see affordable housing included in the scheme.

He said: “As a county councillor I am aware that the site has been sold and I would urge the developer to work in line with our neighbourhood plan, which would include 40 per cent affordable housing.

“This is an ideal site for housing because it’s on a bus route, it’s walking distance into town and it’s near shops, which provide services for the nearby community. After eight years, I welcome the conclusion of this development. The site has been mothballed for eight years so it has been damaged but the existing buildings will be completely demolished and removed.

“Oxfordshire County Council was thinking of reusing it as a care home or for social services but I am pleased that it's actually going to be normal housing because we are short of housing in Henley.”

A spokesman for the county council confirmed the sale. He said: “Contracts for the sale of Chilterns End have been completed, subject to planning consent, and the purchasers are about to submit their planning application.”

Nicholas King is based in Buckinghamshire and is named after its founder and chairman. It predominantly builds in and around the Home Counties and South East of England.

Its website says: “We build homes that suit the characteristics of the area and place the local community needs front and centre of every development.

“Building since 1991, each development has been carefully considered to complement the local surroundings, yet all share the same ethos and come with the same level of customer service.”