There’s nothing like moving to a retirement development with mum and dad – and a grand piano, as these young retirees discovered
When Ali Sharpe’s parents moved into Churchill Retirement Living’s Dean Lodge development in Southbourne, on the Dorset coast, nobody expected Ali and her husband Bob to move in too.
Ali 61, the former director of the Bournemouth Community Gospel Choir, said: “We were visiting my parents one lovely day. We’d been on the beach and were walking up to the visitor’s entrance of Dean Lodge and I noticed a For Sale sign on the French window of one of the ground floor apartments.
“I commented to my husband Bob that it was for sale and I’d like to have a look. We found it was open and had a look around.
“We were living in our family home at the time – a big four-bedroom house we’d done up when the kids were little and now they’d moved out and it was beginning to look like it needed a bit of work.
“Bob [a retired librarian and professional after dinner speaker] isn’t a fan of DIY so when I pointed out the beautiful new kitchen and shiny bathroom suites in the apartment at Dean Lodge he started to have a serious think about it. And there was plenty of room for our baby grand piano too!
“We got to my parents and mum remarked we were later than expected. I told her we had been buying the apartment downstairs. The statement had come out as a joke comment but actually Bob and I were both thinking it was the right move for us. Within half an hour the four of us were in the sales office watching the signing of the papers. It took just one week to sell our old house and we moved in.”
“For so many reasons this has been the best move we have ever made,” Ali added. “It is a perfectly easily maintained place to live and we have cut down our running costs by downsizing.
“We are on-hand to help out my parents and our children love to visit. We love being close to the beach where walks or swims are a daily routine.
“It’s also wonderful to be a part of a friendly community where we care about each other without needing to intrude. And of course, my beloved baby grand piano fits perfectly!”
As well as offering a range of 42 apartments for the over 60s, Dean Lodge has an owners’ lounge and a guest suite – so ideal for visiting friends and family to stay. One bedroom apartments are available from £242,950
For more information visit www.churchillretirement.co.uk / 01202 983952. The Show Complex is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10am to 5pm
[mappress mapid=”128″]
