TIMPERLEY'S historic Hare and Hounds is set for a transformation into more than 70 retirement homes.

A planning application for the pub at the junction between Stockport Road and Wood Lane – opposite Timperley Sports Club – was submitted to Trafford Council in the middle of September.

Built in the 1800s, the Hare and Hounds has been serving the residents of the village for almost 200 years.

But its days might be numbered as Churchill Retirement Living wants to use the site to build a combination of one and two-bedroom apartments and cottages for pensioners over the age of 60.

The planning application is bound to draw opposition from some residents, but Churchill Retirement Living explained its reasoning for the transformation by citing the UK's ageing population.

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It said: "We would all wish to live well as we live longer. We want to remain active, useful members of a community and retain as much control over our lives as possible.

"However, the vast majority of housing stock is not built with the needs of older people in mind.

"[They] are living in homes which are unable to meet their changing needs."

Churchill Retirement Living, which describes its average customer as 'an 80-year-old widow', also cited social, economic and environmental benefits of retirement homes.

Despite the age of the Hare and Hounds, the architectural and historical interest of the pub and its bowling green, now a beer garden, is said to be limited due to modern additions and alterations.

A consultation is open now until November 12, with the deadline for the decision on January 20.