Work has started on a large town centre development which will provide housing for hundreds of pensioners and students in a derelict part of the town centre.

Construction is now underway at the Hughenden Quarter site, near Morrisons, with plans in place to build a 260-home retirement village, including a shop, IT area, village hall, library and fitness suite.

The six hectare former Broom Wade and Compair industrial site has been neglected over the years, but after clearing the land and finishing work on a new £2 million road, the council has announced plans to see it home up to 750 people.

The first phase of the project will see a retirement village, named Hughenden Gardens, created in the centre while a care home is also being built.

As part of Wycombe District Council’s plans, a family restaurant or pub could also be opened next to the village, while work to reopen a disused chalk stream in the middle of the land has now finished.

WDC cabinet member of economic development and regeneration, councillor Roger Wilson, said: “The development of Hughenden Quarter is putting life back into this site and putting people back into the town.

“Without the council’s injection of investment it could have stayed as an empty piece of industrial wasteland.

“Instead, when this site is fully built out, it will be home for around 750 people.

“Putting people back into this central location has a double benefit – it creates more homes and it also creates new jobs right in the town centre.”

The first phase of the project will see developers build a new ‘independent supported living village’ for Extra Care Charitable Trust which is expected to be finished in 2018.

This comes after funding was secured by WDC, Buckinghamshire New University and Buckinghamshire Thames Valley Local Enterprise Partnership.

Earlier work included clearing and preparing the site for construction and diverting Hughenden Stream, as well as putting in a ‘spine road’ which runs from Glenisters Way roundabout behind Morrisons up to Hughenden Avenue.

Cllr Wilson said: “The redevelopment of this large town centre site will release existing homes for local people by opening up more choices for older people who want to ‘downsize’, but still live in the town to stay close to local friends and family and the town’s amenities.”

Work is also underway to build a care home for 73 residents on the land.