Plans are in for 72 affordable extra care flats for older people on the former Clifton Hill Sports Centre site, sold by the council for £3.375 million.
A plan for 72 affordable flats for older people who need care has been lodged for the site of the old Clifton Hill Sports Centre. The land has stood empty since the sports centre was knocked down.
The application, 26/1412/FUL, was validated on 5 October. The applicant is PHL Exeter Ltd. Exeter City Council’s register gives a determination deadline of 14 December.
It is the second housing plan for the site in five years. Permission for 42 homes was granted in 2021 and later cut to 41, but those homes were never built.
What is planned
The planning statement describes the scheme as:
- 72 extra care flats: 68 with one bedroom and 4 with two
- one building of three to four storeys, in red brick
- 100% affordable rent, with care available on site 24 hours a day from a CQC-registered provider
- a bistro, a communal lounge, activity rooms and a spa, some of them open to neighbours
- gardens with sensory and “grow-your-own” areas
- 25 parking spaces, including disabled bays, a drop-off and an ambulance bay
- at least 10 permanent jobs on site, plus care staff commissioned separately
Extra care is housing, not a care home. Residents rent their own flat and live independently, with care staff in the building when they need them.
The site covers about 0.7 hectares on Clifton Hill, in Newtown and St Leonards ward, opposite Belmont Park. It sits inside the Belmont Conservation Area.
Who gets the flats
All 72 homes would be filled through a nominations agreement with Devon County Council and Exeter City Council. The city council’s disposal report from May 2025 says the homes will go to older Exeter residents on the housing register for the first 25 years.
The report also sets out the rent and the residents the developer expects:
- rent of no more than 80% of the open market rent for a similar home
- residents with an average age of 75
- mostly one-bedroom flats, because a single person or a couple can share one
The council’s own housing needs assessment of December 2024 found a gross need for 451 extra care homes in Exeter, and a net need of 181 between 2021 and 2041. Devon County Council’s market position statement of February 2025 counted 151 extra care places of unmet need in the city.
How the council sold the site
The site belonged to Exeter City Living, the council’s own development company. The council decided to scale the company down in October 2023, and the land came back to the council in March 2024.
The disposal report sets out what happened next:
- In December 2023, councillors agreed to sell on the open market, but not for student flats.
- The site went to market in August 2024, with tenders in October and final bids in November.
- None of the bidders offered to build the 41 approved homes.
- The highest bidder was Preferred Homes Ltd, a registered social housing provider, at £3.375 million.
The ban on student flats cost the council money. A Savills valuation of March 2025 put the site at £3.8 million for student housing, so the sale is £425,000 below that figure. The council had first estimated the gap at about £920,000.
The Executive approved the sale on 20 May 2025, and the planning statement says Full Council followed on 10 June 2025. The sale only completes if planning permission is granted for affordable extra care. The report says a covenant bars student housing on the site.
What neighbours said
The applicant held its own consultation between 30 April and 18 May 2026, with a leaflet drop and a website. It received 10 responses, nine online and one by email. Most respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the plan, according to the planning statement.
The concerns raised were:
- rear access to houses on Portland Street
- parking
- the height and bulk of the building
- the loss of the old sports centre site as open space
The applicant says the Portland Street rear access will be handed back to the council to manage. It also says 24-hour staffing will help with anti-social behaviour in the area, which was raised during pre-application talks.
The site’s history
The sports centre was built in 1984 to a design by the architect Nicholas Grimshaw. In October 2021 the council granted permission to demolish it and build 42 homes (20/0691/FUL). A 2022 amendment cut that to 41. The planning statement dates the centre’s closure and demolition to 2022.
No Community Infrastructure Levy is payable, because extra care is not charged. The applicant’s draft section 106 terms cover the nominations agreement, a travel plan, biodiversity net gain and a payment towards the Exe Estuary protected habitats.
What it means for you
- If you live nearby: you can comment on 26/1412/FUL on the council’s planning register. Every document, including the drawings and the transport assessment, is on the related documents page.
- If you or a relative might need extra care: the flats are let through the councils, not sold. Places would be nominated through Devon County Council’s adult care team and the city council’s housing register, so ask either council about extra care.
- What happens next: a decision is due by 14 December. We will report it. Other applications in the city are on our planning news page.
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