HRH Princess Royal unveils new Livability care home in Bognor Regis

Comms Team

28/05/15

Her Royal Highness Princess Anne yesterday unveiled a brand new Livability care home in Bognor Regis.

The care home, called Ashley Place, is a new site for the residents who were previously in Ashley House, also located in Bognor Regis. HRH the Princess Royal was introduced to many local supporters of Livability and was then taken on a tour where she met some residents of Ashley Place.

In a speech to the assembled friends, family and local supporters of Ashley Place, The Princess Royal said: ‘To have been here since 1892 is no mean track record. There’s a lot of experience which has been gained over that period of time which Livability has the advantage on, and you can feel that all of that has come together here at Ashley Place. It’s a pleasure to see so many of you here and it’s always nice to join in on an event like this for Livability where they plan for the future and now you can all look towards the future and enjoy it.’

Ashley Place is larger, more spacious and more modern than its predecessor Ashley House. Each resident will now benefit from wider doorways and power-assisted buttons to open doors without the need to ask a support worker for help. In addition, each resident will now also have their own ensuite bathroom in their private flat along with a communal courtyard and dining area, which is ideal for socialising with fellow residents, friends and family.

Dave Webber (Livability Chief Executive) said: ‘It feels wonderful to be opening a new service. Livability has supported disabled people in Bognor Regis since 1892, and we’ve worked here pretty much 24 hours a day since. The replacement of our wonderful Ashley House, which has served us for so long, has been a very long time coming and we are delighted that today we are able to open this new service for those who had previously lived at the service. We have lots of ideas about what we would like to do with this building and we would like to make full and proper use of it but first we wanted to welcome the residents.’

The Princess Royal then unveiled a plaque commemorating the opening and was presented with a posy by Ashley Place resident Rachel Powell.

Livability is a long-established part of the Bognor Regis community, providing a residential service for disabled people since 1892 when the charity opened Arthur’s Home in Aldwick Road. Princess Anne is Livability Patron and has been closely associated with the charity for over 12 years and has offered a great deal of support for Livability over the years. More recently, HRH toured Livability’s Treetops service in Colchester to help promote the benefits of Livability’s Home Design Appeal.