Developing Manor Gardens
A unique new community housing development has been proposed for Manor Gardens in 2020. Barnwood Trust plans to develop the site to create 46 new accessible homes set in landscaped gardens, with shared space for socialising and the opportunity for a thriving supportive community to grow.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, plans for the Manor Gardens redevelopment are being re-evaluated. Further information will be available soon.
Manor Gardens historic development site
Barnwood Trust has submitted a planning application for neighbourhood housing at Manor Gardens in Barnwood, Gloucester. This is a flagship project for the Trust, investing in its historic site at Barnwood which goes back more than 200 years. The project will showcase high quality contemporary and accessible home design, and so much more.
The application is for 40 one- and two- bedroom apartments; 4 three-bedroom houses; and 2 three-bedroom dorma-bungalows in Newstead Road. These will replace 23 obsolete one-bedroom flats, some workshops and garages, and also Wheatstone House. The 18 two-bedroom bungalows at Manor Gardens will remain and they are currently being renovated ahead of the proposed building work.
Beautiful spacious homes
The new homes on the Manor Gardens site will be beautifully designed, accessible, environmentally friendly and finished to a very high standard. Lawrence Miller who is overseeing the proposed Manor Gardens development project for the Trust, said: “We plan to build 46 new homes on the site that will be spacious, light and airy with ample accessibility for those with limited mobility, giving a roomier feel than usual. Both the newly renovated bungalows and the newly built homes at Manor Gardens will benefit from a leafy and relaxed environment which we hope will enhance wellbeing for people who live there.”
Homes will be available to rent, with a mix of market-rate and subsidised-rates being offered. The redevelopment will be phased to enable all existing residents to stay, and by working together with the people who will live there, the Trust hopes to build a welcoming and inclusive feel to the site, promoting strong relationships between neighbours and a sense of wellbeing. Barnwood plans to build belonging at Manor Gardens, not just housing.
Vibrant community living
Manor Gardens will be a place where everybody is welcome. A good mix of residents of all ages and walks of life: from young professionals to retirees; from single people to families with young children; from self-supporting residents to those needing care at home. Lawrence Miller said: “A vibrant, close-knit community will likely include a diverse range of people, and enjoying community life together will mean building on the strengths of each individual. Looking out for one another, getting involved in things that you really care about, and doing a lot of what you love, will all be a part of what makes life good at Manor Gardens.”
This new community housing development at Manor Gardens promises an ideal balance of private apartments and bungalows with their own outdoor space, plus areas to help bring people together. These will include landscaped communal gardens, a shared growing patch, and plans for community rooms in the Manor House for group activities, so that Manor Gardens residents and members of the wider community have a space to meet.
Speaking for the Trust, Chief Executive Sally Byng said: “The timing feels pertinent for a building project like this one. The Government’s strategy for tackling loneliness, A Connected Society, recognises the importance of ‘strong and meaningful social connections’. At Manor Gardens, we hope to nurture a thriving community as an exemplar of how spaces and places can impact on a good life for everybody.”
Accommodation to suit different needs
Manor Gardens is not being designed as a special ‘scheme’ to house people with disabilities separate from the rest of the community but instead as a neighbourhood where people with different needs can enjoy living alongside one another – not a traditional supported housing or retirement village but a multi-generational site, available to anyone who wants to be a part of it. And, should additional care or support be needed, flexibility, choice, and control will all be key.
There will also be an opportunity to use new assistive technology at the Manor Gardens site.
Speaking for the Gloucestershire County Council, Mary Morgan said: “We are pleased to be working with local partners Barnwood Trust to support the development of an innovative neighbourhood model of housing. Together, we are exploring ways of linking up housing, flexible care options and the strengths of the local community, in line with our ‘Housing with Care’ strategy for Gloucestershire.”
Join in with the project
Barnwood Trust is a charitable foundation dedicated to creating the best possible environment in Gloucestershire for disabled people and people with mental health challenges to make the most of their lives, and building belonging is at the heart of the new development at Manor Gardens. Barnwood is eager to discuss ideas for connected community living and to find ways to build a thriving support network at Manor Gardens.
Lawrence Miller said: “We would like to work together with residents to help shape the design of this unique new place. So, Community Builders will be working at Manor Gardens and in the surrounding Barnwood area to enable community connections to grow even before the new buildings are in place.”
To find out more about the development and to register your interest to get involved, either as a future resident or a local community member, visit www.barnwoodtrust.org, email info@barnwoodtrust.org or call 01242 539935