The Beckett provides 89 extra care apartments on the site of a former bus depot on the edge of Tunbridge Wells town centre. Developed for Elysian Residencies, the scheme adheres to the later living ethos that life should be fulfilling, engaging and uplifting, enabling residents to live life on their own terms, in their own home.
Focusing on reinstating the domestic character of Royal Tunbridge Wells, the development responds sensitively to the scale differences between St John’s Road, Woodbury Park Road and the surrounding residential areas with three new buildings varying in height from three to five storeys, orientated on a north/south axis around a landscaped courtyard garden. External finishes have been chosen to reflect local context with the façade employing brick and painted render for a clean, elegant aesthetic.
The five-storey primary building along St Johns Road references the classical proportions of the adjacent listed building. The building to the north of the site is smaller in scale and references the domestic vernacular of the surrounding residential properties on Woodbury Park Road.
All apartments feature full-height windows and balconies to ensure a seamless connection with the outdoors. Internal circulation areas are generously proportioned and have been designed to maximise opportunity for social interaction. The upper floors are intentionally set back and utilise a lighter, ephemeral materiality to minimize their visual impact, relating thoughtfully to the vernacular roofscape.
At ground level the sensitive communal landscape design re-opens green corridors across the site and supports the principles of well-being and social interaction.
