Urban Edge has been working with Inspired Villages on their Little Mount Lake Retirement Community in Frant, located on the outskirts of Tunbridge Wells, East Sussex, since 2020. We developed the design and masterplan following the principles of the original outline approval and submitted a Reserved Matters application to Wealden District Council. This application was initially refused; however, following further design development and discussions with the Local Authority, we successfully secured approval in 2021. Subsequently, we submitted a Reserved Matters application for the second and third phases of the site, which was also approved in 2024.

Overall, the scheme will deliver 146 specialist homes for over‑65s, comprising apartments and cottages, along with a village centre building that includes communal facilities such as a café, restaurant, gym, swimming pool, fitness suite and clinical space. The village centre adopts a smaller footprint than previous schemes delivered for Inspired Villages, with the aim of improving build costs and supporting the overall saleability of the development. The masterplan and landscape strategy were shaped around the site’s key natural features, including existing mature trees and the established lake.

Phase 1 of the development, comprising 55 units across four village apartment blocks and the village centre building, commenced on site in June 2025. Completion is expected in the final quarter of 2027.