Reigate and Banstead Borough Council has approved plans for a £215m retirement village on the site of Legal & General’s former head office in Surrey.
The Kingswood proposals filed by Legal & General’s later living business, Inspired Villages, consist of 270 specialist age-appropriate apartments and up to 10 respite units.
Stretching over 43 acres, the development will offer on-site facilities open to the wider community including a wellness centre, including swimming pool, studio, gymnasium and tennis courts, dining and recreation facilities, as well as a small business centre and children’s nursery.
Inspired will also open up 16 acres of parkland for the use of the local community in perpetuity.
Construction of the facility, which will kick off this year, is expected to create around 175 construction jobs per annum over its 6.5-year build period.
In addition, the development will see up to 80 permanent jobs created once complete and operational with over £170m invested into the local economy.
“This planning permission allows us to breathe life back into this previously obsolete scheme and maintain our legacy, while bringing jobs to local people, creating an important asset for the local community and much needed accommodation for the over 65s,” said Legal & General Later Living chief executive Phil Bayliss.
The planning approval marks Inspired Villages’ eleventh site secured with planning across the UK, adding to its existing portfolio of 1,000 homes.
Legal & General meanwhile has confirmed its Advanced Care Research Centre seven year multi-disciplinary research programme at Edinburgh University will start in September.
