Cornerstone Healthcare bring award winning complex care to the South West

Award-winning complex care provider Cornerstone Healthcare has broken ground at its latest multi-million-pound, 80 bed, eco home on the Imperial Park site in Bristol.

The ‘green’ building is being built to a certified BREEAM Excellent standard and has been designed to be thermally efficient, meaning it will retain heat in the winter and stay cool in summer for longer. The build will have solar panels on the roof to provide electricity and use environmentally friendly air source heat pumps to heat or cool the building.

The home, which will bring 140 jobs to the local area, will also have a beautiful living roof. This roof top garden is not only a wonderful feature for residents but will also benefit the local wildlife and, alongside a sustainable drainage system which will manage rainwater attenuation. The development has been designed by care sector specialists Northstar and will be built by Real on behalf of the Cornerstone Healthcare Group, who have been named ‘Complex Care Provider of the Year’ in the HealthInvestor Awards for two years in a row 2020 and 2021. 

As a nod to its green credentials, the home has been given the name of ‘The Burren’ following a competition for Cornerstone staff. The Burren is an area of outstanding natural beauty in Ireland that has species of flora and fauna only found there.

Cornerstone’s CEO, Johann van Zyl, said: “Now more than ever we are all aware of climate change. At Cornerstone we are committed to reducing our carbon-footprint and this exciting and innovative project paves the way for the future of care home development. Real and Northstar are experts in their field, and we know that they will provide us with the best environment for the complex needs of our residents.”

“We are also delighted to be bringing our care model to the South West. The provision of specialist nursing beds is in short supply and the completion of this new home will provide an additional 80 beds providing high levels of complex care.”

Andy Heyes, Regional Director at Real, South West, said: “It is fantastic to be starting on site at Imperial Park. The later living facility marks yet another great addition to our portfolio and not only do we intend to provide an excellent scheme, but one that goes above and beyond to meet the needs of our ageing population.”

The Burren is the fifth home in Cornerstone’s portfolio along with South Africa Lodge and Kitnocks House in Hampshire, Marula Lodge in Surrey and current building project, Cale View in Somerset due to open in 2023.