The fate of a new 70-bed care home in a “mediocre small town with no shops, buses or trains” is set to be decided this month.

Halebourne Care Group Limited submitted a planning application to Eastleigh Borough Council in January 2023 to construct a care home on land at Fieldfare Road at the entrance to the Boorley Garden development.

If approved, the care home will consist of three floors and provide nursing, residential, and dementia care. The building layout has been designed specifically to accommodate these care requirements.

However, after consultation, the developers changed the plans to include a community hub to provide a “more beneficial and diverse cluster” for users and so there is a small retail or community centre at the 680-home Boorley Gardens.

With the developer’s alteration, the hub would be located on the ground floor of the care home building and would be available for free public booking – though not everyone is happy with the plans.

The 1,162-square-foot site will have a large multi-purpose room of around 807-square-foot, separate access to operate independently from the main care home, a kitchen, and separate toilet facilities.

Halebourne concluded that including a community hub within a larger building within the care home is “consistent with the original vision for the development as a whole”.

“The proposed hub is consistent with the thrust of the Local Plan, bringing forward a much-needed facility in an accessible central location as part of an emerging community, Boorley Gardens,” a statement said.

“Halebourne considers that the proposed Hub would fulfil the original intentions of the Outline permission for Boorley Gardens in terms of on-site provision, ensuring that the requirement for planning obligations to be ‘directly related’.”

However, two residents and the parish council oppose the application.

Matt Miller, a resident of Botley, said the care home is in the middle of a housing estate with “poor” bus services.

He added that the area was “quite nice”, but due to the “excessive amount” of homes being built, it’s now just a “mediocre small town with no shops or buses or trains”.

Another resident, Terry Anne Horncastle, believes that there is not sufficient parking to accommodate 120 staff and visitors to the care home.

She asked: “Where will parking be if the home has an event and multiple family members arrive in multiple cars?”

Botley Parish Council (BPC) objected to the plan, saying it was contrary to the originally outlined plan.

It added that members were concerned about the impact on NHS provision and public transport access, adding: “The parish council would prefer to see the retention of the original retail element proposal. The change of use from the outline permission was considered an easier option for the developer.”

A decision on the application is set to be made at Eastleigh Borough Council’s West End and Botley Local Area Committee on January 27.