A CORNWALL Council planning meeting has heard that 60 extra care apartments for over-55s would be “highly prominent”, particularly in relation to a neighbouring Grade II listed building, but they are much needed.

Cornwall Council has applied to its own planning department to build the apartments on a site near Liskeard town centre.

The proposal would result in the demolition of Laity House at Higher Lux Street which is currently used for adult education purposes, though those services are due to be moved to a new hub being built on Liskeard’s Cattle Market site.

A planning report stated the scale of the building, predominantly three and four storeys high, together with its ‘blocky’ mass “does raise concerns in respect of impacts on the character and appearance of the surrounding area. The building would be highly prominent in the immediate setting, and whilst the large trees surrounding the edges of the site would provide some degree of screening, the proposal could be argued to be somewhat out of scale with the surrounding development”.

Planning officers noted the likely impact on the setting of the Grade II listed Luxstowe House directly opposite. The new development would be two storeys higher than that historic building. They admitted the application was “finely balanced”, but highlighted the benefit of providing much-needed extra care housing in the town.

Naomi Taylor, of Liskeard Town Council, told a meeting of Cornwall Council’s strategic planning committee that her authority recognised the strong need for extra care facilities for an ageing population in the town and the development was within walking distance to the town centre, which would have economic benefits for businesses.

The town council welcomed a 25 per cent affordable housing allocation within the development, which will contribute toward’s the town’s high housing need, specifically for over-55s. She added that the council did note some concerns about the close proximity to Luxstowe House. Cllr Taylor said councillors would like to see a design – which would be revealed at a later reserved matters stage – that is sympathetic to the environment.

Emily Heydon, on behalf of the application, said the scheme promotes independent living but there would be 24/7 on-site support, and is the sort of housing which is in short supply in Cornwall. The council’s housing strategy identifies the need for 641 extra care housing units in north and east Cornwall alone over the next eight years. She said the proposal would create over 40 new jobs for housing and medical staff, cleaners, caterers and others.

Sarah Keast, from the council’s care and wellbeing department, added that the development would be for older people who may otherwise be placed into more institutionalised forms of care, such as residential care homes. It would allow couples to stay together where one has a care need and the other does not.

“This scheme is well needed. It’s one of four council-owned sites that we’re putting through for planning permission,” she said.

Local member Cllr Nick Craker said the development fitted into a bigger jigsaw of other changes going on in Liskeard currently. He added that he didn’t like the indicative designs that have been put forward as he didn’t think they were in keeping with Luxstowe House and wanted to see something more sympathetic at a later stage.

He added: “It’s interesting that we actually got rid of an awful lot of our over-55s housing stock over the last few decades and now we’ve realised we haven’t got enough and we need to build some new stuff. Do we ever learn our own lessons?

“It will be a big building and will stand out, there’s no getting away from that,” he added but stressed there was a need for it and the positives far outweighed those concerns.

The outline application was unanimously approved.