A new later living community with multi-purpose spaces and intergenerational facilities is coming to Walton-on-Thames after an appeal was won by planning consultancy, Nexus Planning on behalf of Guild Living and Legal & General.

This scheme will deliver 222 units of extra care accommodation for around 350 people in Walton-on-Thames, many of whom will come from the local area. There will be 196 self-contained 1, 2 and 3-bedroom homes, plus 26 smaller care suites providing a higher level of care and transitional accommodation.

Tim Spencer, Associate Director of Nexus Planning’s specialist Later Living Team, said: “We are particularly pleased that the broad range of significant benefits of this later living scheme have been recognised by the Planning Inspectorate, and we hope that this approval will pave the way for further developments that which will allow more people to live their best lives in their retirement years.

“This development will provide a fantastic place for residents to live and thrive, whilst enabling them to remain connected with the broader community, the town centre as well as the natural environment. We look forward to seeing this later living community play an integral part of life, for people of all generations, in Walton-on-Thames.”

The development will provide a gym, restaurant and multi-purpose spaces open to the public. This will be key in promoting the intergenerational activity within the scheme and creating the opportunities for residents of the scheme to engage with the wider community. The scheme will also deliver a generous new area of public realm through the centre of the site, creating a new link between the town centre, Ashley Park and the Walton-on-Thames Cricket Club.

Spencer continued: “The UK has a rapidly ageing population. Alongside this, there are significant increases in frailty and dementia in the older generation. It is of great importance to locate extra care communities in the right areas, where residents have access to town centres and high streets, so that barriers to economic engagement are removed. It is also very important to locate retirement communities in healthy urban spaces with accessible parks and recreational spaces. The Guild Living site is ideally located on the edge of the town centre, next to Ashley Park and near to the Thames Path.”