A COUNCIL has objected to plans for a 72-bed care home in a new development over parking and safety concerns.
Plans for a care home on the Kingsgrove housing development on the edge of Wantage have been criticised for not having enough parking spaces.
The Care UK application seeks Reserved Matters approval of layout, scale, appearance, access, and landscaping for a care home.
The plans propose a care home set over three storeys that will provide accommodation to residents with a range of care needs, from residential to full nursing care.
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More than 80 jobs will be created by the care home and 34 parking spaces have been proposed. This includes two disabled spaces and two spaces for dual use as an ambulance bay and a delivery bay.
The 72-bed care home will be built adjacent to the community hall and will share eight parking spaces with the care home.
However, Wantage Town Council believes this will not be a sufficient amount of parking and has objected to the plans.
The council wrote in its objection on the planning application: "Wantage Town Council's concerns regarding the shared parking spaces remain. We believe that if these two facilities ultimately end up sharing parking spaces, then the use can't be determined individually and separately. To properly assess the suitability of the use of shared parking spaces for the care home use and community hall we feel a single assessment across both plans is necessary.
"The concerns about pedestrian safety and connectivity have still not been satisfied. In the latest version the pedestrian footpath on the southern side does not appear complete - it is not continuous."
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In August, a Wantage and Grove campaign group also objected to the plans over parking concerns.
In the objection the group said: "We have already pointed out in previous applications for Kingsgrove that the number of parking spaces for the Community Hall and the adjacent Primary school are insufficient and the number of spaces provided."
Adding: "72 units for people over the age of 55 should have 72 parking spaces (one per unit) with the addition of spaces for staff without using spaces assigned to other buildings."
Care UK is one of the largest providers of residential care for older people. In the planing application Care UK say they are "proud" to be building more "modern and fit for purpose new care homes" and adds it is proposing to develop a "state-of-the-art care home" at this Wantage site.
Care UK envisage the new home to have 72 en-suite single bedrooms; management and administration areas; communal dining and socialising areas including cafe, hairdressers, hobby room and cinema.
The care home plans were discussed at a Vale of White Horse planning meeting on Tuesday evening where a decision was set to be reached.
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