Call for homes for pensioners in Doncaster village

Community leaders in a former Doncaster pit village are calling for more homes for pensioners there.
There has been a call for more accommodation for pensionersThere has been a call for more accommodation for pensioners
There has been a call for more accommodation for pensioners

New assisted living flats are being built in Edlington for OAPs on part of the former Dixon Road and Thompson Avenue sites in the village, along with a number of new houses.

But there is concern in the village that there is still not enough accommodation for the elderly there since the closure of an old people's home there a few years ago.

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Edlington Town Council has written to Doncaster Council asking if the new flats on Dixon Road and Thompson Avenue could be ring-fenced for Edlington people. But it has been told they would have to apply the same as anyone else in the borough for places at Swallowdale, as it is to be called, run by Housing and Care 21.

Mayor Frank Arrowsmith said: "We said there was a need for accommodation for elderly people in Edlington, and asked if they could ring fence the properties. They can apply, but they will be managed borough wide."

"Over the last few years, we've had Barnburgh House for over 55s, on Edlington Lane, but that was demolished, because it was at the end of its life. We never had it replaced.

"From the Edlington residents' point of view we lost a complex with dozens of beds and it was replaced by 20 OAP bunglalows."

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Peter Dale, director for regeneration and environment for Doncaster Council, said: “We are fully committed to supporting the development of homes which are needed and wanted by Doncaster residents. The 20 bungalow homes that are being developed in the Dixon Rd/Thompson Avenue area will all be allocated to those over 55 years of age. The allocation will take into account the applicant’s social, family support or care needs.

“The development of these bungalows will increase the size of the housing stock and increase choice in the area. We are aware of the concerns raised by some members of the Town Council and we have arranged to meet with them to discuss their concerns.”