Mon 17th Oct 2016 - Oakman acquires Olney care home site for £1.5m Oakman acquires Olney care home site for £1.5m: Oakman Inns & Restaurants has completed the £1.5m freehold acquisition of Westlands House, a former care home in Olney, Buckinghamshire. Oakman will immediately begin preparations for a planning application to convert the grade II-listed building into a new town-centre destination and hostelry. Chief executive Peter Borg-Neal said: “I have long been an admirer of Olney and have always wanted to have an Oakman Inn in the town. We like this part of the world, and the runaway success of the Navigation Inn at Cosgrove has provided further encouragement. We’re always looking to continue to grow our reputation for providing a modern, relaxing atmosphere and a welcoming environment.” The new venue, if granted planning permission, will be called The Cherry Tree after Olney’s June Cherry Fair. Based at 3 High Street, the building’s original address was, in fact, 13 Market Place and was home to the Hipwell family, local brewers and pub landlords, who lived there for almost a century. Then, as now, the building lay at the heart of the town’s activities, with the monthly farmers’ market, the weekly Thursday Market and The Olney Pancake Race attracting many visitors to the bustling and vibrant town and all taking place on its doorstep. Oakman Inns hopes to create up to 40 jobs in Olney and, as a winner of several “best employer” awards, an excellent training programme and a huge range of staff benefits, Oakman is sure to attract enquiries from those looking for a developing and sustainable career in hospitality. The Oakman design team intends putting its proposed plans on display in a week-long exhibition where the local community can ask questions, see the proposed plans, get a feel for the design materials such as fabrics and furniture and to express their views on the proposed project. Borg-Neal added: “We’re known and recognised for the design work and commitment we make on maintaining our portfolio of listed buildings, while at the same time making them warmer, lighter, airier, cleaner and open-hearted. The towns we serve all have this sense of history, but they also embrace the changes needed to thrive and prosper.” Full details of the planning exhibition will be announced in the next few days with location and times. Following the acquisition of Banyers House in Royston (which opens on 2 December) the Olney site brings the number of properties across the Oakman group up to 18. Contracts have already been exchanged on a site in Amersham and Oakman is in advanced negotiations on a number of other sites.