A LAUNCH date has been announced for the new retirement village in Recreation Road, which has been named after one of the nearby Lickey Hills.

Bilberry Place will feature one and two bedroom apartments, a homeowner's lounge, landscaped gardens, a table service restaurant, a guest suite and a security entrance system.

The assisted living development has been named after the tracts of Bilberry bushes that cover the hill between the Lickey Hills pathways, which residents have been cropping to make jams for hundreds of years.

Robert Monkman, regional sales director for McCarthy and Stone, which owns Bilberry Place, said: "We wanted to choose a name for our new Bromsgrove development that was memorable, and that would resonate with local residents and McCarthy and Stone homeowners. Our chosen name, Bilberry Place, will acknowledge the town’s history and nature reserves – a topic we know future homeowners will be extremely interested in.”

Two years after Bromsgrove district planners gave the project the go-ahead, housebuilders McCarthy and Stone will be hosting an exclusive launch event for the village on Thursday, February 2.

Presentations will take place at the Holiday Inn on Kidderminster Road between 11am and 2pm and retirees are encouraged to book their place by calling 0800 201 4741.

To find out more about Bilberry Place, visit mccarthyandstone.co.uk.