COUNCILLORS are going to visit a derelict building near Allendale before deciding whether it can be converted into a house.

A proposal has been put to planners to refurbish and extend a one-story building, on land north-west of Leawater, near Thornley Gate.

The planning officer representing the applicant, Maria Ferguson, said the conversion and reuse of disused buildings into permanent residential use was supported by the Allendale Local Plan.

However concerns have been raised over the size and scale of the development, and its impact on the listed buildings, as well as a new access track.

The application site is located around 40 metres from nearby listed buildings, known as Brides Hill Cottages.

At the Tynedale Local Area Council meeting last Tuesday, Allendale county councillor Colin Horncastle said: “I am very supportive of old buildings being brought back into use, but what I am not happy about is the access track and where it is in the field.

“There’s no need for the track to come so close to these buildings.

“The right thing to do is for us to go and have a site visit to see if we can move the access track away from the listed buildings.”

Local resident Stuart Searle was one of the nine objectors to the application.

Speaking at the meeting, he said: “A speed survey was taken last winter, but because of the time of year it would give a misleading figure.

“We respectfully request that the survey is repeated during these busy months to give a true indication of the visibility needs of the proposed new access.”

Councillors agreed to adjourn a decision until a site visited had taken place.