MULTI-MILLION pound plans to expand a care home in Dursley with a further 45 bedrooms have been supported by the town council.

The Hollies, a specialist care home for people with dementia, is currently at full capacity.

Staff and owners wish to cater for more people in the community who need specialist residential care.

Its new £4.5 million plans, officially submitted on Thursday, May 25, were supported by Dursley Town Council at a meeting on Tuesday, June 20.

Members of the council’s planning committee agreed to support the new proposal, which sits off Drake Lane, due to a growing need for care services as well as increased job opportunities.

When operational, ‘sister home’ The Willows will sit next to the current home and provide 95 new jobs, doubling the 93-strong workforce.

A spokesman for the town council said: “Dursley Town Council supports the application and welcomes the potential new local employment opportunities the proposed development would provide.

“The proposed development would also help to address the growing need for care facilities, in particular dementia care, and improve the services on offer.”

Applicants Littlecombe Park Ltd stated in its application that there was a growing need for care facilities nationally, specifically within dementia due to an increasing ageing population growth.

The new three-storey facility will provide 55 new full time jobs and 40 new part-time jobs with the aim to offer these to people in Dursley to reduce an impact on transport and travel.

Jonathan Hawkins, owner of The Hollies, told the Gazette: “We are delighted that we have the green light to go ahead with the new home from the town council.

“High quality care for those in their later years is scarce in the county and particularly for the increasing numbers who need more support.

“As well as providing a valuable new service, the home also creates 40 new permanent jobs making the Hollies the largest employer in the town.

“We hope to start the building work in the autumn with the home fully open in September 2018.

"The existing Hollies has been full for some time now and we are already taking enquiries for the new ‘Sister’ home.”

Stroud District Council will now make the final decision.

To view the plans in full visit the SDC planning site and search for application S.17/1050/FUL.