With our unique model of retirement living, the environment is a significant consideration, in two major ways. Not only do we want to build sustainable housing with exemplary green credentials, but we want to create a relaxing, life-enhancing environment for people to live in, with a wide variety of plants and trees (which in turn encourages a wide range of native wildlife).

Research has shown that spending more time in nature is associated with better health and wellbeing, and of course ensuring that each community’s green spaces score highly on biodiversity is the right thing to do from an environmental perspective.

In fact, we go further than most developers, and always aim to improve the biodiversity of any site we build on – and nurture it going forwards. We design our community outdoor spaces in a way that suits the local climate and soil, plus we consult with neighbours to seek their input on the planting used against their boundary.

Additionally, working with award-winning environmental consultants Lockhart Garrett, our focus is not just on how the gardens and communal outside spaces can offer a richer variety of flora and fauna than was present before, but also how the therapeutic value of planting and design can augment people’s lives.

On this note, we’ve also been working with the experts at the University of Stirling, following the framework they have developed to optimise the therapeutic value of our outdoor spaces, to ensure that we are taking a scientific approach based on dependable research – and leading the field when it comes to this important aspect of wellbeing and quality of life.