Construction starts on Evendon View, bringing new care places and community space
Work has officially begun on a new care home on Evendons Lane in Wokingham after a ceremonial ground‑breaking involving the Mayor and local representatives. The development, named Evendon View, will provide 64 bedrooms and a mix of care options designed for long‑term residents and people living with dementia.
The Mayor of Wokingham, Councillor Alwyn Jones, joined members of the developer, Boutique Care Homes, for the launch at the muddy site. Wearing a hard hat and hi‑vis jacket, he used a ceremonial spade to mark the start of construction and toured the plot alongside his mayoral attendant, ward councillor and a nearby resident.
“Whilst attending a building site has been one of the highlights of my Mayoral year, I must commend your team on their passion and enthusiasm in explaining how a muddy area will be transformed into a luxury care home with outdoor areas where residents can enjoy the benefits of nature.”
The operator says Evendon View will offer residential care, Boutique Care Homes’ specialist nostalgia care for people living with dementia, and short‑stay breaks. Planned facilities include a bistro and hair and beauty salon, alongside lifestyle suites fitted with kitchenettes and a dedicated hobby room intended to support residents’ independence and wellbeing.
Landscaping around the building forms a central part of the scheme. Developers plan generous gardens, a nature paddock and what they describe as a wildlife orchard with about a dozen apple trees. Local resident Barbara Stagles, who attended the launch, welcomed those elements as ways the home could sit within and contribute to the wider neighbourhood.
She told the team she was impressed by their approach to community integration and the planned wildlife orchard. The developer says the outside spaces are intended to offer regular opportunities for residents to spend time outdoors and to support activities that draw on memory and senses — an increasingly common focus in modern dementia care.
What the new home will include
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bedrooms | 64 |
| Care types | Residential, nostalgia dementia care, short stays |
| Outdoor features | Landscaped gardens, nature paddock, wildlife orchard (~12 apple trees) |
| Facilities | Bistro, lifestyle suites with kitchenettes, hair & beauty salon, hobby room |
For residents, family members and local people the proposal will be watched closely. New care places can relieve pressure on hospitals and community services, but they also raise practical questions around traffic, parking and integration with nearby homes and services. Councillors and the developer toured the site together to review plans and to explain the intended changes to the landscape and building.
Councillor Jones said he looked forward to updates as the project progresses and praised the team for thinking about how to enrich the lives of future residents. The ceremony underlined the role local civic leaders play in signalling support for schemes intended to widen care provision in the borough.
- Capacity: 64 bedrooms across residential and specialist dementia care.
- Facilities: communal bistro, salon, hobby room and lifestyle suites.
- Outdoor plans: landscaped gardens, paddock and wildlife orchard with around a dozen apple trees.
Construction now moves into the site‑preparation stage. Local people will expect planning conditions, construction traffic management and community engagement to be handled carefully as work proceeds; the developer and council will be responsible for keeping neighbours informed and minimising disruption while the new home takes shape.
