Ledian Farm Care Village, Kent
DHA are increasingly involved in medical and long term care development proposals and have recently secured permission for English Care Villages to transform a partially derelict industrial estate into a specialist care village in Leeds, Kent.
With more than one in four of the UK population going to be aged over 65 people by 2037 according to the Office for National Statistics, and with an increase in elderly people living alone, the later-living property market is rising significantly.
The team at DHA has a longstanding track record in successfully securing permissions in this sector. Having advised Inspired Villages over the past five years, DHA has secured 116 homes at Ledian Gardens in Leeds village, near Maidstone, including the recent permission for phase 3 of the development.
These additional 39 new homes will help meet an evidenced local need for elderly person accommodation. Once complete, the scheme will provide 155 homes built around a village centre with a swimming pool, spa, gym, restaurant and shop.
This new phase will add more choice of living accommodation, including cottages and bungalows, with all residents benefitting from woodland and open space area, which will also be accessible to the wider community.
Inspired Villages’ ambition has been helped by DHA after it secured planning permission for a major environmental investment of its already approved Ledian Gardens development near Leeds. The company tasked DHA with going back to planning for permission to dramatically improve the energy performance.
The plans included the installation of 354 roof solar PV panels plus ground source heat pumps to ensure net zero carbon in operation. Despite sitting outside the village’s Conservation Area, Officers still questioned the proposals and recommended members to refuse it.
Having declared a climate emergency in 2019, and with the recent elections returning a number of Green Party climate conscious councillors, the Planning Committee argued in favour of the application and unanimously granted permission for the environmental improvements.
Project Team
Mathew joined DHA as one of our original graduate intake in 2004. He has a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Westminster, having previously studied Geography at the University of Birmingham.
Matthew Blythin MRTPI
Director
In his time at DHA, Matthew has worked on a wide variety of projects across all sectors including large scale estate regenerations, rural housing, Local Authority infrastructure projects and industrial schemes. He has also appeared as expert planning witness on behalf of clients at Public Inquiries.
Although working across all sectors and with a wide range of experience in his time at DHA, Matthew leads our education teams in our Maidstone and Leeds offices, and has overseen many applications which have secured permission for new schools and replacement school buildings across the country. He also has particular experience working with contractor and local authority clients on leisure and infrastructure projects, including new leisure centres and multi-storey car parks.
Matt is a keen cricketer and in to all things sport, including coaching the DHA-sponsored Roseacre Raiders!
Paul joined DHA in 2014 having previously worked for Kent County Council and the Department for Transport in the fields of development planning, transport policy, capital projects and public transport. Paul leads our Maidstone-based Transport Team and our public sector transport planning work.
Paul Lulham FCILT
Director
He provides advice to a range of clients throughout the UK to support the preparation of planning applications, Local Plans, transport strategies and the negotiation of developer contributions for transport infrastructure and services. He is also an experienced expert witness, having appeared at numerous Public Inquiries, Appeal Hearings and Local Plan Examinations.
Some of Paul's projects include:
- Millwall Football Club Training Ground and Academy, West Kingsdown;
- South East Maidstone Urban Expansion;
- Kent Medical Campus, Maidstone;
- Mole Valley Local Plan Transport Assessment;
- Hartopp and Lannoy Point estate regeneration, Hammersmith and Fulham;
- Chatham Waterfront and Mountbatten House, Chatham;
- Ledian Gardens Integrated Retirement Community, Maidstone;
- School of Science and Technology, Maidstone;
- Abbey Farm Primary School, Swindon.