Owners of Castlegate House Residential Home in Grantham plan conversion to 23-bedroom house

The owners of a former care home are trying to convert it into a 23-bedroom house of multiple occupancy.

Castlegate House Residential Home, in Castlegate, Grantham, closed in July last year, citing increased costs and fluctuating occupancy.

Residents were relocated elsewhere as part of the closure.

Now the company, Castlegate House Rest Home Ltd, has applied to change the use of the building.

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Plans to South Kesteven District Council propose 23 bedrooms with shared facilities across three floors.

The design and access statement noted internal alterations, including minor room subdivision, with no impact on the building's external appearance.

“Overall, the work involved in the conversion doesn’t have any more consequential effect on the historic parts of the building than the works carried out in the mid-80s when the building was originally converted from a townhouse to a nursing home,” they said.

The original townhouse, with two storeys, attic rooms, and a vaulted cellar, dates back to the mid-18th Century.

When the closure was announced last year, a spokesperson for the home said: “It is with deep regret that the directors of Castlegate Rest Home have made the very difficult decision to close Castlegate Rest Home and to cease trading.

“This is a direct result of the ever-increasing costs of heat, light, and power, as well as the increasing cost of living coupled with fluctuating occupancy, and sadly we were in the position of being unable to sustain the service.”

In May 2021, a Care Quality Commission inspection reported 15 residents in the home.