Care home planned for Belper brownfield site

Robertson Construction has been awarded the £18.8M contract by Derbyshire County Council to build a care home and a health centre on a former factory site in Belper.

The contract to redevelop the old Thornton’s Factory site is divided into two phases. The first phase of work is a new 40-bed care home to replace the Ada Belfield residential care home on Field Lane, which no longer meets modern standards.

The building will also include a new library and a pedestrian link to town centre shops. Work on the £9.8M care home and library is expected to begin in April.

The second phase of work consists of the construction of a £9M health and care facility. Robertson Construction has been contracted for both elements of the Belper integrated scheme construction works.

As the new care home development sits within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, the building has been designed by Glancy Nicholls Architects and to reflect this.

The facade of the Castle blouse and hosiery factory, which later became Thornton’s, and the Empire Music Hall, the oldest building on the site, are both being retained to form the new library.