The new Barstaple Almshouse

The new Barstaple Almshouse

The Trustees acquired a 0.78 acre site at Lower Knole Lane, Brentry in September 2010, with the objective of constructing a new almshouse consisting of 28 flats and a day centre; the flats will be based upon the specification of the flats constructed at John Foster’s Almshouse which was completed in March 2009. A planning application was submitted at the end of March 2011 and there are on-going discussions with the City Council’s planning department.

The funding of the project will be met by the sales proceeds of a number of other buildings, including the former almshouse which is located at the corner of Old Market Street/Midland Road. The mid-nineteenth century building was no longer suitable to house older people. The history of the Barstaple Almshouse, which was founded in 1395, is described in the history section of the website. Trustees are delighted that this charity which is over 600 years old will soon be providing Bristolians with the highest standard of accommodation for older people.

In addition to the almshouse development, the Trustees have agreed that a new day centre will be constructed as part of the development. Bristol Charities has provided day services at the Henbury Centre, Machin Road, Henbury since January2005 and it plans to meet the needs of a greater number and range of beneficiaries. With the successful completion of John Foster’s Almshouse in March 2009 and with the acquisition of experience in the delivery of a range of day services since 2001, Bristol Charities is well-qualified to explore ways in which further services could be introduced. 

In this way, Bristol Charities would, in addition to the core objective of providing almshouse accommodation, utilise the experience and knowledge gained during the last 9 years, provide a cost-effective method of enhancing the ‘quality of life’ for a wide range of older people and, as we can demonstrate from our current work, this work would also address the preventative measures necessary to delay hospital/care home admissions.

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