HAYDON Bridge residents should have a say in the future of the village’s former fire station site.

That’s the view of Dr Jan Harding, Conservative candidate for the Haydon and Hadrian ward at the county council election in May.

The retained fire station closed in October as part of a package of cuts, aimed at saving £500,000 from the fire and rescue service budget.

The site was put on the market for sale, and Northumberland County Council has been in discussions with an unidentified “preferred bidder” since November.

Haydon Parish Council would like a community use to be found for the site, but has expressed fears in recent months that it could be lost to a housing developer.

Now Dr Harding has joined the debate, and has written to county council chief executive Steve Mason calling for a public consultation over the site, which had been used as a fire station since the 1960s.

In his letter, Dr Harding said: “It seems some progress has been made in determining the site’s future, but as far as I know, you are yet to formally involve the residents of Haydon Bridge in the process.

“Given that the old fire station site is on public land in the centre of Haydon Bridge, will the county council consider consulting residents before the sale of this site goes any further?

“It is the residents who must live with the consequences of the council’s decision and it seems only right and proper that the community has a significant voice in determining the site’s future.”

Dr Harding said the site could be used to provide affordable homes for local people, or accommodation for the elderly.

A county council spokesman said: “We remain in negotiation with a preferred bidder and are unable to release details of their identity or their intended use at this stage.

“Local residents will have the opportunity to make their views heard as part of the planning process when the potential purchaser submits a planning application for their proposed use.”