The former Victorian School at Stratton Education Centre in St Phillips Road can be converted into flats – and the land it stands on can be used to build 10 houses despite the concerns of neighbours, members of the council’s planning committee and some of its own experts.

The borough council’s own housing development company applied to the authority for permission to turn the Victorian school building into seven flats and for 10 houses in short terraces of three or two units to be built on the edge of the site facing Clays Close and Green Road.

The plan is to sell the apartments and houses on the open market, alleviating both the borough’s housing need and the council’s need to bring in money.

Two nearby residents spoke against the plans – although neither were against the use of the Victorian building for flats per se – but were more concerned about the placement of the houses on the perimeter.

The houses and flats are all slightly below the nationally described minimum space standards and also have no green space allocated.

Karen Doyle said: “I’ve lived next to Stratton Education Centre for 40 years.  The thought that the Victorian building will be obscured by such awful-looking buildings makes me rather emotional.

“It doesn’t take much to push sash windows into these buildings to improve them. And we want to be able to see the Victorian Building.  Please put something decent up instead of these horrible buildings”

Both Mrs Doyle and Mark Rawsthorne, another neighbour, expressed concern about the design of the access to the development from Clays Close.

Committee member Jane Milner-Barry said she agreed with the council’s own conservation and urban design officers who had both said the scheme was not acceptable.

She said: “Stratton Education Centre is a significant local building on a very prominent site. Whatever we build there will have a big impact on how people will experience the area.

"I think that the three units at the south of the site facing Green Road should be removed to allow people to see the Victorian building – and I agree with the urban design officer that the proposals should be sent to the design panel.”

Coun Milner-Barry did not find a seconder for a motion to defer the proposal and send plans to the council’s design panel.

Instead, with a condition on improving the access for visibility, councillors voted for Coun Jake Chandler’s motion to approve the plans by a majority, with three Labour councillors, including Coun Milner-Barry abstaining.