Why is biodiversity so important to us?

Retirement living is woefully under-served in the current property market.

It’s a simple fact that we need to build more homes to meet the needs of the population in general, and this is doubly true when it comes to fulfilling the requirements of older people, who find it difficult to find the right retirement property within today’s existing housing stock.

But we also need to protect our natural world, and find a way to fulfil these housing needs without a negative impact on an area’s wildlife and their habitats.

We don’t think that this is an either/or situation, and our unique retirement living concept is proof that it’s possible to actually increase the net biodiversity of a greenfield site after it has been built upon. The key is in the considered landscape design and planting.

As well as being designed using a set of principles proven to enhance the therapeutic value of outdoor spaces – making sure that residents benefit from this important aspect; it’s been scientifically proven that connecting with nature enhances wellbeing – all our sites are landscaped in a way that suits the site in question.

We add to existing hedges and woodlands, planting appropriate native species, such as hawthorn, alder, beech, blackthorn and dog rose, boosting their biodiversity and therefore their value as wildlife habitats.

In addition, we design additional planting around the boundary of each site, consulting with the owners of neighbouring properties to find out their views on how they wish their boundaries to be augmented, both to ensure their privacy and also give them some say in their new outlook over the development.

Both here and in the private gardens, we use a mixture of young and mature plants, so that there is no long wait for the biodiverse habitat to establish itself.

We understand it’s not a common attitude for a developer to take, to take real pride and pleasure in
designing biodiverse landscaping that improves quality of life for both human occupants and wildlife,
but we believe that it’s central to our unique retirement living concept.

This is why we’ve teamed up
with award-winning consultants Lockhart Garrett, because we believe that it’s worth investing in a
rich variety of plants, shrubs and trees.

If the natural environment around our retirement properties has greater biodiversity, then its value to residents is increased.

If you’re interested in finding out more about our approach to wildlife-friendly green spaces, please
do drop us a line.

Outside, we’re focusing on biodiversity and therapeutic garden principles, with carefully chosen planting to enrich both residents’ lives and habitats for native wildlife. The communal and private
gardens will be planted with a range of climate-suitable plants, shrubs and trees, while the existing hedgerows will be enhanced with a mixture of alder, hornbeam, hawthorn, beech, holly, blackthorn and dog rose, in keeping with existing local species.

A woodland walk also encourages residents to get out of the house and meet their neighbours, and benefit from being outdoors and enjoying nature, as well as lead a more active lifestyle. It includes a railway line feature, as a nod to the Kelvedon and Tollesbury Light Railway (also known as ‘The Crab and Winkle Line’) which once ran across the site.