Don't regard the elderly as some sort of sub- species

He speaks as if the elderly are some sort of sub-species that the rest of the population is obliged to tolerate.

Our plans to build private sheltered apartments are born of a real, pressing and growing need for accommodation for older people in locations where they actually want to live.

Is this asking too much?

The elderly are the fastest growing sector of the population; this is not a social disease but an inevitable consequence of better health and declining birth rates.

Of course we are all concerned about "youngsters hoping to work, set up homes and have the families of the future" as E. Harvey puts it, but to say the appearance of new retirement homes shows them "no compassion" is preposterous.On that basis you could argue that building starter homes shows no compassion for the elderly!

He goes on to claim we have "no regard for creating a healthy, thriving community" and that the government inspector was not concerned with the economic and social consequences of the development.

Let me draw the writer's attention to various surveys on private retirement housing.

It is known to save the NHS millions of pounds in unblocked bed-space and lower demand on health and welfare services.

Retirement flats are taken in the main by local people '“ they could be your parents or mine '“ who are finding the old family house a burden.

This also has the beneficial side-effect of releasing family homes back onto the market and so reducing pressure for new-build land.

Of the minority who do move from further afield, we find many who re-locate to enjoy their retirement near their sons, daughters and grandchildren.

What is so wrong with that?

Many residents report an improvement in their health and well-being and say they feel more a part of the community than when they were living alone.

As for affordable housing, this is a substantial contribution we make to the local fund for lower-priced homes of exactly the kind Mr Harvey wants, some of which might be rented or bought on a shared ownership basis.

Far too much of the comment arising from this application verges on rampant discrimination against an age group of which we will all, God willing, eventually be a part.

The British attitude towards its elderly population is something of which we, as a nation, should be ashamed.

I hope the good people of Littlehampton will welcome their new neighbours when the time comes.

Paul Trofimov, managing director, McCarthy & Stone Assisted Living, Byfleet, Surrey