Horndean Retirement Village,
East Hampshire

A landmark 60-bed care home and a prestigious retirement village in Horndean

A two-phase retirement village delivering exemplary care, wellbeing and net-zero later living with leading care partners

In 2025, Highwood successfully delivered Horndean Retirement Village, a landmark later-living development set on the edge of the South Downs National Park in East Hampshire. The scheme represents the culmination of more than a decade of strategic land promotion and close collaboration with East Hampshire District Council, resulting in one of Highwood’s most ambitious and comprehensive retirement village projects.

Outline planning consent for the retirement village was granted in early 2021, following its allocation through the Council’s Local Plan process. The consented scheme comprised a 60-bed care home, 120 assisted living units and a dedicated village care centre, including a wellness centre, spa, swimming pool, restaurant and a wide range of shared amenities designed to support healthy, connected later living. Today, the completed development meets a clearly identified and growing need for high-quality older persons’ accommodation across Horndean and the wider East Hampshire area, while delivering significant social, environmental and economic value.

The retirement village was delivered in two carefully coordinated phases in partnership with two of the UK’s most respected later-living operators.

Phase One saw the construction of a prestigious 60-bed care home for Barchester Healthcare. Construction commenced in late 2021, with the completed care home opening to its first residents in 2023. The purpose-built facility provides exceptional accommodation and care in a tranquil setting, benefitting from immediate access to landscaped grounds and views across the surrounding countryside.

Phase Two delivered 120 assisted living and retirement dwellings for award-winning operator Inspired Villages. The later-living neighbourhood was designed as a net-zero retirement community, integrating sustainable construction, energy efficiency and shared amenities to support long-term wellbeing and independence. The village welcomed its first residents in 2025, completing the vision for a truly integrated retirement destination.

'Blendworth Hills' – the new retirement village

In partnership with Inspired Villages Group

The new retirement village

Stunning interiors throughout

Dignity, wellbeing and comfort for later years' residents

Dignity, wellbeing and social connection

At the heart of the first phase, the two-storey care home was designed in a distinctive C-shaped configuration to maximise daylight, legibility and access to landscaped outdoor spaces.

The building accommodates 60 generous en-suite bedrooms alongside a suite of high-quality communal facilities, including comfortable lounges, an activities room, cinema and hair and beauty salon.

The layout promotes dignity, wellbeing and social connection, while enabling efficient care delivery and future operational flexibility. The completed care home set a new benchmark for later-living design in the region.

A carefully phased, multi-generational community

Horndean Retirement Village formed a key component of Highwood’s wider strategic land promotion at Land East of Horndean—one of the most ambitious schemes undertaken by the business. Working collaboratively with the Council, local residents and development partners, Highwood helped unlock planning consent for an extensive mixed-use community including new homes, education, sports facilities, green infrastructure and a dedicated care village.

Consent was secured through the same collaborative approach that underpinned the wider masterplan, ensuring alignment with local housing need, infrastructure delivery and long-term placemaking objectives. Following completion of the retirement village, Highwood commenced development of a further 82 homes on the remaining parcel of land in 2025, marking the final chapter in a carefully phased, multi-generational community.

A breathtaking location for the new care home

Ariel view of the new care home

'Bere Grove' – the new care home

Luxurious specifications throughout

Aerial view of the original site

Original site plan of the care home and wider retirement village

A CGI of Horndean care home

Highwood and Barchester break ground on the new care home

A future-focused model for later living

Horndean Retirement Village stands as a compelling example of how strategic land promotion, thoughtful planning and high-quality delivery can combine to create places of lasting value. By integrating specialist care, assisted living, wellness facilities and sustainable design within a sensitive landscape setting, the scheme delivers a future-focused model for later living.

The project demonstrates Highwood’s ability to guide complex sites from long-term promotion through to delivery – creating places that support independence, dignity and community while responding to the evolving needs of an ageing population.

Read about our original land transaction and the public enquiries that shaped our plans.