A COMPANY behind plans to transform a former Newton Abbot care home into a house of multiple occupancy (HMO) has returned with a new planning application after its previous proposals were refused.

Rosecroft Homes Limited has submitted an application to Teignbridge Council seeking permission to change the use of 30 Courtenay Road, the western half of the former Dunmore Care Home, from a care home to HMO accommodation.

The application, reference 26/01249/FUL, follows the refusal of an earlier proposal in January.

A separate application relating to the other half of the former care home, number 28 Courtenay Road, was also refused.

The latest scheme would see the three-storey building converted into a large HMO containing 13 non-self-contained, single-occupancy rooms, with communal kitchens and other shared facilities.

A separate smaller HMO is also proposed on the lower ground floor, providing five single-occupancy bedrooms alongside a communal kitchen and dining room and laundry facilities.

New windows and other changes to the building are also proposed.

The former care home was historically used as assisted living accommodation, providing care for up to 28 residents across 31 rooms.

In its planning statement, Rosecroft Homes describes the building as a ‘redundant former nursing home’, stating the proposal would bring a previously developed site back into use.

The company argues that the property's central location provides good access to public transport, local services and employment opportunities.

It also says the HMO would be aimed at professionals and key workers and stresses that the proposed rooms would be for single occupancy only.

Rosecroft Homes says the latest proposal represents an opportunity to refurbish and reuse the existing building while providing what it describes as a ‘high quality and much needed’ form of accommodation.

Teignbridge Council are due to make a decision by October 5.

Anyone wishing to view the plans, or submit comments, can do so via Teignbridge Council's planning portal by searching for application reference 26/01249/FUL