A SMALL village could see a grade II listed property become a 75-bed care home if Bucks planning officers give the nod.

Applicant Compass Property Limited has submitted a scheme to provide ‘much needed’ care facilities for the elderly at The Priory in Stomp Road, Burnham.

The site is a collection of offices as well as a three-storey 19th-century property (The Priory), which had a three-storey extension in 1997.

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The applicant is seeking to change the building’s use after raising concerns about its ‘very low occupation rate’ due to people working from home as a result of the pandemic and that the building is not fit to implement the high technology needed for modern office working.

To transform The Priory into a care home, it will require another three-storey extension, a two-storey wing to the east, and roof alterations to add a plant room and a lift.

The applicant does not believe the extensions will negatively impact the green belt or detract the public views of the listed building. They also think the proposal will offer a more ‘sympathetic and potentially less intense use of the site’ compared with its current use.

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The design and access statement reads: “The provision of a care home facility will provide long-term sustainability for the site given the landowner’s duty of care for the listed building and afford the opportunity of a more flexible approach to be taken for both the use and tenancies of the Listed Building, thus ensuring the long-term sustainability of this important building.”

Buckinghamshire planning officers are yet to decide on the application.