A BUSINESSMAN who withdrew controversial plans to convert a former primary school into a hostel has said he is not connected to a new scheme to create an elderly care home on the site.

A Northern Echo investigation found the new applicant shares an address and phone number with Bashar Al-Issa, the convicted fraudster who proposed creating a 109-bed hostel for vulnerable adults on the former Greenland Community School in South Moor, Stanley.

Mr Al-Issa, who was born in Iraq, withdrew his application following a community outcry to the plans last summer.

In June this year, the Edwardian building suffered extensive damage to its roof and interior following a major fire.

Now plans have been submitted to Durham County Council to create a residential care home with 109 rooms for elderly people.

The application has been submitted by Dhari Al Mutawa from the We Care 4 group, which was formed in May.

The organisation’s website claims it already has another care home, at an undisclosed location in North Yorkshire, and is based at a former bail hospital on Milbank Street in South Moor.

Mr Al-Issa, who runs an organisation called the One Planet Society, which is based at the same address and shares a phone number with We Care 4.

Last year, his plans to convert the building in South Bank into a 16-bed hostel with a café were rejected by Redcar and Cleveland Council after concerns were raised by a councillor.

Mr Al-Issa told The Northern Echo he is not involved with the new scheme and no longer has a lease for the site.

He said: “I am not involved with that company. I am out of the picture.

“They are international business investors. They have projects all over the world, very high net worth individuals. They would be a great asset to anyone’s project.”

Mr Al-Issa, 41, was jailed for six-and-a-half years in 2013 after claiming to be involved in a £2.8 million tax scam during which he claimed to be making a Hollywood blockbuster.

Since his release from prison he reinvented himself as property developer and now his One Planet Society website states he is working as a life coach.

The Northern Echo has been unable to contact the We Care 4 organisation for comment, but the formal planning application to Durham County Council said: “Our proposal for the current school building is to convert the use into a care home facility.

“The building does not need a lot of extension/alteration except an extension on Rydal Ave Road for the site of the building.”

The plans include converting 30 classrooms to into bedrooms as well as facilities including a library and reading room, computer room, dining room, Skype room, cafe, restaurant, male and female hair dressers, business centre, laundry room, games room, day room, male and female spa, guest rooms, conference room, meeting room and manager’s room.

The operator proposes to do the work in three phases between next year and 2022.

The application claims We Care 4 Ltd was recently formed as a ‘not for profit’ company.

It states: “The object of the company is to provide temporary and permanent care for the elderly residents within the local community that require assisted living.

“A highly experienced manager will be appointed and that person will be supported by suitably trained staff in the appropriate numbers.

“The staff here will be employed from the local community.

“Trainees will also be taken on to give those with no formal qualifications the opportunity to achieve those qualifications paid for by the employer.”

The application also says the plan will ‘bring a vacant building into useful and much needed community use and create local employment’.

It said: “Commercial occupancy of the premises will ensure this building is maintained to a high standard internally and externally and also guard against theft, damage and vandalism.”

The building has been empty since 2013 when the school moved to a new purpose-built site nearby and was sold by the authority in 2016.

It is now owned by Bristol-based Crescent Trustees.

When the blaze broke out two months ago firefighters spent eight hours tackling the flames, which saw the roof almost completely destroyed and left much of the rest of the building unsafe.

Fencing has been placed around the site to ensure the safety of motorists and pedestrians and councillors until a suitable use for the site can be found.

The current application is expected to be determined by county councillors sitting on a future planning committee at County Hall in Durham.

North Durham MP Kevan Jones has written to head of planning Stuart Timmiss to formally object to the scheme.

He said: "I have been contacted by a number of residents who have concerns about the above planning application on the site of the former Greenlands Infant School in South Moor. 

"Concerns have been raised about the need of such a large care home facility at this location and as to whether this development would even be viable as a care home. 

"Residents are worried about road access to the site, particularly as roads were damaged when parts of the building were demolished and have still not been made safe.

"If approved, residents are rightly concerned that this would create significant parking and traffic problems for local residents due to the size of the development and the amount of staff that would be required. 

"In particular parking would become significantly worse on surrounding streets as there are only 24 parking spaces on the site which would not be enough for such a large development. 

"Questions have also been raised as to why the design is so similar to the school building it would replace, as this is not felt to be suitable for a modern care home facility.

"As a result of the above, I am writing to formally object to the planning application and I would be grateful if this letter could be presented to members of the planning committee before a decision is taken on this application."