Papworth Trust opens Knutsford Road housing development

          

On Friday 27 January 2023, Papworth Trust celebrated its official opening of its Knutsford Road housing development. This is Papworth Trust’s first development project in a very long time and is located in Bassingbourn, just outside of Royston. The building, on Knutsford Road, began as a 6-bed care home with 4 ground floor flats and has now been transformed into 10 accessible flats.

The property first became vacant in late 2017, and after considering a number of options, Papworth Trust’s Board of Trustees approved the decision in November 2019 to remodel the property into 10 self-contained flats, each with its own garden. Whilst the pandemic undoubtedly delayed the project, we were delighted in 2022 when the building work was able to commence.

Friday 27 January saw a special celebration event to mark the opening, where our Trustees were joined by local Councillors, South Cambridgeshire District Council, our contractors Pentaco and local residents. Guests were given tours.

Brian Stewart, Chair of Trustees quoted “It’s an exciting day for us all at Papworth Trust, this is our first housing redevelopment project for some time – and for this property, it’s been a long time in the planning. It’s a breath-taking transformation, incredible inside and out. We hope our new tenants will be very happy here.”

Councillor Van de Ven said: "I feel very uplifted to see the wonderful work that's been done, and imagining the happiness of new residents here."

Photography: Simon Watson photography