The Royal Naval Benevolent Trust Acquires New Care Home Site In Portsmouth
Knight Frank, the global property adviser, has advised The Royal Naval Benevolent Trust (RNBT) on the acquisition and strategy for a new care home development site in Portsmouth. This comes after Knight Frank were instructed to source RNBT a suitable care home development site within the Portsmouth area, which led to the successful purchase of the current site.
RNBT has completed the transaction for a state-of-the art scheme in Portsmouth, as part of the Trust’s Centenary Project to develop a care home dedicated to veterans of the Portsmouth Naval Base. The scheme will encompass 66 beds and will be developed by leading purpose-built residential care home developer, LNT Care Developments.
Located on Locksway Road, close to St James’ Hospital and nearby amenities such as the park and cricket ground, the home has the potential to create between 50-60 jobs in the city and bring both economic and social benefits to the community.
Permission for the scheme was granted by Portsmouth City Council in October 2020, with preparations for construction having since been successfully completed. The scheme aims to complete in late Spring 2022. The Royal Navy has given its full support for the development, which is to be named Admiral Jellicoe House after the founder of RNBT, and has presented the home with a badge taken from the Crest of a 1938 battleship which was to be named HMS Jellicoe.
Mandip Bhogal, Associate in Healthcare, Knight Frank, said: “This is an exciting and socially impactful acquisition that will deliver state-of-the-art residential care for local naval veterans. We are pleased to have advised on this strategic site acquisition which will provide high-quality care while creating jobs for the local community. Admiral Jellicoe House is an excellent example of the types of care home development opportunities available in the residential care space, as the UK’s ageing population puts pressure on the need for top-quality care homes, which has only been further highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Nick Fletcher, Chairman of Trustees at The Royal Naval Benevolent Trust, said: “We are delighted that the City Council has given the go ahead for this most important project which will deliver residential, nursing and dementia care for naval veterans in Portsmouth, the Home of the Royal Navy. It will be the centrepiece of our centenary – what better way to mark our hundred years of care than by building such an impressive and important care home for naval veterans.”
Knight Frank’s research identifies a potential 6,500 care homes at risk of closure over the next 5 years, equating to 140,000 beds. This shortage will be exacerbated by the increased demand for care homes by 2050, which will see a national bed crisis in the UK as the share of people over the age of 80 is expected to surge over the next 30 years, with one in ten adults set to be over 80 by 2050, compared to one in twenty currently.
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for investment and innovation in the UK healthcare property sector, having accelerated trends that will lead to closures of care homes, that are no longer fit for purpose, resulting in a significant national shortfall of bed provision. Knight Frank predicts that care home design will adapt to meet future virus experience and that care homes will need to innovate their operational procedures post COVID-19, including an increased use of telemedicine.
