93-Year-Old Homeowner Finds Friendship And Community In Independent-Living Village

Jack Francis moved from South Wales to his new apartment in the Chapters to be close to his daughter who lives in Laverstock.

Jack said that due to their age, many of his friends were unable to leave their homes or were passing away, which led him to feel isolated in his home. Since moving to the Platinum Skies community, which features a host of apartments, houses, and cottages, he has gone on to make new friends who he can socialise with in Chapters’ exclusive on-site facilities which include a bistro, bar, and activity room.

Jack says: “My daughter heard about Chapters, and she came to have a look. She told me about the modern facilities in the kitchen, that the bedrooms are a good size, there’s a nice lounge, and the bathroom has the right kind of shower that I like, which is a walk-in shower. Things sounded ideal. There didn’t seem to be any drawbacks to it. Everything sounded good.

“We have coffee mornings twice a week where we meet in the lounge, which is very pleasant. I’ve made a few friends here and of course we get together on those mornings. The gentlemen also get together at the happy hour.

“That’s the sort of place that it is here. So many people are friendly. It’s just so easy to talk to each other and get acquainted. I was not always a person who could make friends like that, but here it’s so relaxed. Everybody likes to talk. We get talking and it is a very pleasant atmosphere here.”

Jack says that he would recommend that anyone who was in a similar position as he was, where he was living alone and had minimal contact with others, to have a look around Platinum Skies’ communities ‘as a priority.’ He also highlighted that all Platinum Skies communities are conveniently located close to amenities such as food shops and medical centres, which are ideally suited to people who are unable to walk long distances.

“The other advantage for me is that Tesco is just up the road, so I can reach it and walk there easily. There’s also a bus stop right outside Chapters so I can use my bus pass to go into Salisbury.”

Chapters has two dedicated on-site community managers, Tracy and Jenny, who help to organise fun activities such as wine tasting workshops, cheese and wine evenings, yoga, quizzes, and crafts, as well as providing practical and emotional support to the community’s homeowners.

The Salisbury-based community offers a choice of apartments, houses and cottages which start from £120,000 for an apartment and from £252,500 for a cottage or house with the Platinum Skies flexible shared ownership option.

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