Plan to build new 50-bedroom care home, creating 40 jobs - this is what's proposed

Earlier in April, Sunderland City Council’s planning department validated an application for a new facility at Bunker Hill in Philadelphia village.

According to planning documents, the site was previously occupied by the Philadelphia Nursing Home before its closure and subsequent demolition.

New proposals from the adjacent Springfield Care Home include a new two-storey facility on the vacant site, which is expected to create around 40 jobs.

The new care home will be self-contained with associated parking and landscaped gardens and will provide residential care and dementia and nursing care.

It will also include a kitchen, laundry room and some ancillary accommodation such as a hair salon and a visiting GP room.

A Design and Access Statement, submitted to council planners, outlines the need for the facility in the Houghton area.

It reads: “Care of the elderly has been a prominent feature in the news of late, and it is known that in the next twenty years the number of elderly people requiring care accommodation will double.

“This development offers the opportunity of providing a building of quality for Houghton-le-Spring, as well as providing much needed care and employment, as well as contributing substantially to the local community.

“The home will provide care for the elderly, those with dementia and most will require an element of nursing care. “

The report goes on to say: “The new building will, once again, occupy the current vacant demolished site and provide a quality landscaping scheme.

“It will provide enhanced security, due to the fact that the home will be staffed over twenty four hours.

“It will continue to provide substantial employment for the area and invest in the local community and businesses.

“Finally, it will provide a new important focal point for the local community and provide a high standard of care.”

A decision on the plans is expected to be made by the end of July following consultation.

Comments on the plans can be made by writing to the council’s planning department before May 7.

For more information, visit www.sunderland.gov.uk/online-applications and search planning reference 20/00021/FUL

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