Plans for block of flats approved without need for new NHS facilites

In February 2025, BCP Council approved a mixed-use scheme for 68 social rent flats across three blocks in Hawkwood Road car park. A key part of the plans included a medical facility run by the NHS.

Homes England has provided £9.7million towards the project and £7million of funding is from the Boscombe Towns Fund. The remaining £6.6million of funding will be coming from the council’s borrowing.

Currently the NHS has not signed a formal agreement for the ground floor space, to protect funding the space intended for the clinic will be reclassified as general use. This will allow talks with the NHS to continue with the view that if the health service are unable to committee another business will be able to take over.

Full Council debated allowing the project to progress without an agreement signed for the ground floor unit at a meeting on February 10.

Councillor Millie Earl noted the recent C1 rating that BCP Homes got and said: “Delivering Hawkwood Road builds on that trajectory showing we are taking responsibility, investing wisely, and making use of external grant funding to effectively maximise social value.”

Councillor Gillian Martin who serves Boscombe West said there are a lot of residents in her ward who are “disappointed”, adding “we hoped it would bring people with money to the Boscombe area”.

Cllr Martin raised concerns about tenants who would be living in the flats. She said: “I feel that we are condemning the residents in this block to poverty and unemployment because of this, it should have been mixed tenancy.”

Councillor Chris Rigby felt that overall, this was a good project but had some concern about why the NHS hasn’t been able to commit. Councillor David Brown highlighted that there is significant changes happening in the health service locally which could be part of the reason.

Councillor Joe Salmon said: “I think it is disappointing seeing how schemes like this fail, it’s like watching a car crash in slow motion.”

Councillor Patrick Canavan said: “We can’t allow this to fail, it is too important ot the wider regeneration of Boscombe”.

Councillor Kieron Wilson responded to councillors’ concerns, he assured them that the properties hadn’t been allocated to tenants yet and that nothing had gone wrong but the council wanted to be able to protect the funding.

Members approved the scheme being progressed in a vote 64 in favour with one councillor against and two abstaining.