A FORMER nursing home site which is now boarded up and blights a village green could be redeveloped for housing if councillors approve plans next week.

Waterville Homes wants to build ‘a community’ of family homes on the site of the redundant East Green Care Home, at West Auckland.

Its application for phase one of the proposed redevelopment, on scrubland behind the home which used to be cartilage of a school, will be considered by Durham County Council’s area planning committee (south and west) on Thursday, February 18.

Its plan for phase two of the wider scheme- to include demolition of the home and take the number of houses to 31- will be submitted later.

The proposal to be discussed at the council offices in Spennymoor on Thursday is for one terrace of ten, three bedroom houses with back gardens and parking at the front.

Access would be taken from Arnold Street and a non-adopted path linking Arnold Street to Station Road would be resurfaced to create a new section of footpath.

Planning officers are recommending the scheme be approved with conditions including the inclusion of one affordable house within the ten.

It will also ask the developer to pay £10,000 towards local amenity provision.

In its application, Waterville Homes states it hopes to create a community and improve local amenities such as footpaths and by removing the empty care home.

It states: “Waterville Homes believe that we can provide good quality family homes on a site that is currently of no real value to the community as it stands.”

The home was one of seven that Durham County Council closed in 2010 and 2011 and the authority later went on to shut all of its remaining residential homes.

The site sits next to the village conservation area and detracts from its character and appearance as it has been neglected and has suffered anti-social behaviour and been a source of complaints by residents to the council and police.

Officers therefore believe the proposal could improve the site and would be an appropriate site for new housing as it is a sustainable location with access to facilities and services.

Though the scrubland which would be built on in phase one is not seen from the village green officers say it would improve an unkempt and overgrown area.

And its development would help finance the second phase which would remove the rundown home building and likely seek approval by the end of 2016.