West Malling, Kent

This is a new community of 140 extra care apartments and cottages, with communal facilities and gardens. The landscape character takes a strong lead from this market town location in rural Kent. Furthermore, much of the site is existing woodland with an established dormouse and badger population. This is a significant constraint on development but actually adds a great deal of value, with positive biophilic effects being a key part of the overall focus on the wellbeing of residents.

The buildings are set within a range of gardens, full of inspiring social activities to keep the residents feeling young at heart and connected with nature. These include a croquet lawn, café terrace, kitchen garden, woodland walk and wildlife wetland. The planting approach balances amenity with biodiversity. The gardens also work hard as green infrastructure and achieve 100% infiltration of surface water. The planning application was granted March 2024.

Client

Retirement Villages Group

Date

2021 - Ongoing

Team

RCKA, architect / QuadConsult, engineer / TGA, engineer / TPA, transport & highways / Tetlow King Planning