Date for start on £13m care complex

Work on a new £13 million development for older people in South Staffordshire will begin next month, bosses revealed today.

It is hoped the new extra care complex, being built at the site of the former Silverdene care home in Tildesley Close, Penkridge, will help tackle an expanding elderly population.

South Staffordshire has the fastest growing over-85s population in the country.

It is predicted that by 2031 there will be an extra 7,500 elderly people in the district.

Council chiefs today said there was a desperate need for the scheme, which boasts 82 apartments for people aged over 55.

Planning permission was granted earlier this month despite concerns from some residents who deemed it to be too big for the intended site. It is hoped work will be completed by November 2013.

Ursula Bennion, director of business development for Housing Plus, said: "The scheme will provide much-needed high-quality housing and support for local people.

"Almost a quarter of residents living in the village of Penkridge are aged between 50 and 64 and Silverdene is designed to meet the housing needs of not just these people but for others who need care and support, for many years to come." Care Plus, which is part of Housing Plus along with South Staffordshire Housing Association, will be managing the scheme.

It is being funded by a £1.14m investment from the Homes and Communities Agency and a £1.1m boost from South Staffordshire Council, as well as a donation of land.

Brian Edwards, leader of South Staffordshire Council, said: "We desperately need facilities like this in the district. The population is getting older and with the baby-boomer generation fast approaching retirement age, it means we need to act now.

"That's why we're investing more than £1 million into this project; that's how important we think this development is."