A CHARITY wants to extend its retirement homes to meet urgent demand for places.
The Mersea Island Trust has put in outline plans for six extra rooms on each of its two warden-controlled complexes at Akhurst Court, in Melrose Road, and Mersea Court, in High Street North.
Chairman Mary Sparks said there was a desperate need for places as more and more people looked to retire to Mersea Island.
She said: “We have a long waiting list and we want to use the land we have got. We have people applying for places even before they want to come in because the places are that popular. More room would certainly help.”
The homes are run by a part-time office manager and 12 volunteers. Akhurst Court has a live-in warden, Debbie Towers, and Mersea Court has someone on call at all times. Residents pay between £112 and £125-a-week.
The proposed rooms would be large enough to house couples and would also be be a more modern design.
Plans for the extensions have been backed by West Mersea Town Council, but Colchester Council has the final say.
The trust was formed in 1961, to provide warden-supported accommodation for the elderly and infirm of Mersea.
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