Ipswich site of former Victoria Nurseries garden centre could be turned into elderly care home as Caring Homes Group submits plans

A 70-bedroom care home for the elderly could be built on the site of a former garden centre.

First Care Homes, part of the Caring Homes Group, is seeking permission from Ipswich Borough Council to build a new three-storey care home in Kettlebaston Way, following the demolition of the existing buildings.

The site once housed Victoria Nurseries, which closed in January, after 39 years in business.

Access to the site would remain from Kettlebaston Way, itself located off Westerfield Road.

The care home would take up much of the site, with car parking allocated to the north-west.

In addition, gardens would be present around the building that would be given different functions for its residents, including sensory experiences.

Caring Homes Group said it hopes to have an open-plan reception with café or bistro on the ground floor, alongside bedrooms and nursing stations.

Specialist dementia care would be located on the first floor, while the second floor would contain more bedrooms.

Ancillary facilities would be in the basement – although ‘key facilities’ would be present on every floor.

The plans follow a previous application, submitted back in 2020.

The applicant claimed many residents were ‘not against’ the change of use for the site.

Feedback from a public consultation that ran between August and September 2020 included concerns people would park on the side of the roads, a risk of increasing traffic, the scale of the building compared to the houses nearby, and worries over possible light and noise pollution.

As a result, parking spaces were increased, garden spaces were increased, and a training room was omitted.