Plans approved for ex-Heathercroft Care Home refurb in Woolston

An application has been granted planning permission by Warrington Borough Council relating to the former Heathercroft Care Home in Woolston.

It was confirmed by the Warrington Guardian in February that the Longbarn Lane home had been bought by a new care provider named Exemplar Healthcare.

Plans were then submitted to the council in April for a £4million project to transform the site into a ‘state-of-the-art care home, with the scheme creating more than 150 jobs.

Heathercroft closed in the summer of 2021, with ‘current challenges facing the sector’ being named as the main reason.

It came after the home was placed into special measures by the Care Quality Commission in September 2020 after being branded ‘inadequate’ following an inspection.

Ashberry Healthcare Ltd, which ran the former Heathercroft Care Home until 2021, were fined more than £60,000 this month, October, after a 90-year-old resident accidentally set fire to himself while smoking.

Firefighters were called to the home on May 21, 2018, by carers who found Henry Robinson on fire in an outdoor smoking shelter. He died on the way to hospital as a result of a heart attack.

Although Ashberry Healthcare Ltd was not prosecuted for his death, inspecting officers found fire safety regulation breaches, of which the firm was convicted of three.

New owner Exemplar Healthcare previously said it would be renaming the 40-bed home Woolston Grange, specialising in supporting people living with dementia, acquired brain injury, complex mental health conditions and physical disabilities.

It added that the building would feature high quality and spacious communal spaces, as well as a sensory and therapy room and landscaped gardens for residents and visitors to enjoy.

The care home is located on Longbarn Lane in Woolston. Picture: Google Maps

Plans approved by the council include the construction of a new build, single story extension and the replacement of existing timber cladding boards.

A new bin store, cycle parking and smoking shelters would be created, as well as a new pedestrian access point and landscaping.

Another feature was the replacement of windows to some bedrooms to improve resident amenity and provide level access to secure garden areas.

One of the application documents states: “The proposed interventions covered by the submission are modest in nature, and should have minimal impact on the physical context of the site.

“The largest scale item is the extension to the lounge and kitchen-dining areas at the ground floor of the older or main building.

“As this is positioned within a secluded private garden area to the northern portion of the site, there is little prospect it will negatively impact upon amenity of adjacent development.

“All other aspects of the proposals are aimed at refurbishment and improvement of the external site environment.”

It adds: “In social context terms, the proposals will not adversely affect local residents of the area, as the site has already operated as a care home for at least 30 years – and this use will not change.

“Economically, the area will benefit as Exemplar Healthcare’s purchase of the site – together with its investment in updating the facilities – will ensure the prolonged availability of care sector employment opportunities.”

The application states that Exemplar Healthcare is ‘very eager’ to complete the proposed works at the earliest opportunity.