(Image: Churchill Living)
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Plans have been submitted to build 42 apartments on the site of a former NHS community clinic and day nursery.
Developer Churchill Living is seeking permission to redevelop the brownfield site at Church Lane, in Horsforth, with a scheme aimed at older residents.
The proposals include 42 apartments, communal facilities, landscaped gardens and parking.
The development would replace the former Horsforth Clinic and a day nursery.
The retirement apartments would be restricted to people aged 60 and over, or those aged 55 and above living with a qualifying resident.
Facilities would include an owners’ lounge, a lodge manager, communal gardens, scooter storage and a video entry system.
Planning consultants acting for the applicant say the scheme would help meet a growing demand for specialist accommodation for older people.
They cite the Leeds Strategic Housing Market Assessment, which identifies a need for more than 8,000 leasehold retirement or sheltered housing units across the district by 2040.
The site lies within Horsforth town centre and close to shops, healthcare facilities and public transport links. The applicant argues this makes it a suitable location for retirement housing, allowing residents to access services on foot and reduce reliance on cars.
A public consultation carried out earlier this year generated 12 feedback responses. Concerns raised included the height and scale of the building, parking provision, traffic around nearby St Margaret’s Church of England Primary School, concern regarding GP surgery capacity and the potential impact on the Horsforth Conservation Area.
In response, the applicant says the building has been designed to minimise overlooking and would step down in height towards neighbouring homes. It also states that heritage assessments found the development would cause no harm to the nearby conservation area or listed buildings.
The scheme would provide 14 parking spaces and include solar panels, air source heat pump technology and biodiversity improvements.
Planning documents estimate residents would spend around £326,000 a year in local shops and services, while the development could create 79 construction jobs and 5.5 permanent jobs.
A planning and design statement submitted with the application argues that the scheme would deliver "much-needed" retirement housing while enhancing a prominent Horsforth site.
It concludes: "The sensitive design, appropriate massing, scale, materials and detailing, together with an attractive landscaping scheme will improve the urban fabric and provide high quality building of much needed retirement housing on this prominent site in Horsforth."
The full application can be viewed online at Leeds City Council's planning portal (Ref: 26/05553/FU). It out for consultation until Friday, November 6.