Derelict Hunslet Hall Road shopping centre in Beeston could make way for extra care apartments

The land, adjacent to Pennington Court Nursing Home in Hunslet Hall Road, would be home to 63 extra care apartments, parking, gardens and a newsagents, if the plans are approved by council planning officers.

The site is currently occupied by the vacant Hunslet Hall Road shopping centre and a newsagents, which would be replaced.

According to the design and access statement submitted with the application, the site would be run by Preferred Homes Limited, which provides social and extra care housing.

The document adds that the apartments would be allocated between elderly tenants qualifying for extra care and separately supported living for working-age adults with physical disabilities.

A previous application for two smaller buildings on the site had been granted approval back in April 2020, but the applicant claims the new plans come from discussions with the council to focus it all in one building.

It said: “The amended proposals create a single building designed with a contemporary modern exterior. The revision to a single unified block enables residents to access all areas and the communal facilities without the need to go outside.

“The proposals rationalise and reduce the area required for circulation and security, which allows greater space to be provided for communal facilities and enables all apartments to have dedicated external areas.

“What we are proposing Is a fully integrated scheme which is outward facing and welcoming to both the external and internal community.”

It added that the site, a former shopping precinct, was currently subject to “vandalism and dereliction”.

The document said that all apartments would have “natural ventilation”, and would be “light and sustainable”, adding it would “allow care to be delivered to people in their own homes and create a sense of community and well-being”.

It also promises facilities for use by the residents and the wider community, which would “provide a valuable community resource for the local area”.

A decision on the site is expected in October 2021.

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