Blackpool Council set to build new council homes in the town

An artist's impression of the new houses

Blackpool Coastal Housing - which manages council homes in the town on behalf of the local authority - revealed plans last year to demolish 81 mainly one-bedroom flats and bedsits at Troutbeck Crescent, Mereside.

These will be replaced with new properties including two and three-bedroom houses and dormer-style bungalows.

The development will be built on a different footprint to the existing flats with open space, including a landscaped drainage pond, facing onto Clifton Road instead of Preston New Road as at present.

Coun Christine Wright, cabinet member for housing on Blackpool Council, said: "New council housing is well over-due and it is important we are able to deliver it ourselves.

"These will be good quality new houses, with a wide variety of styles including family homes and dormer-style bungalows.

"People deserve good quality and we hope this development will meet demand in the town for social housing."

The designs have been created by Preston-based architects Cassidy and Ashton.

Chris Homer, of Cassidy and Ashton, said: "We have tried to design the homes with the maximum amount of flexibility, giving tenants the ability to make them their own.

"They are larger than standard houses and have been designed to act as a gateway to Blackpool because this is such a prominent site.

"The scheme also maximises the amount of public open space."

The existing properties, which were built in the 1960s, have become difficult to let and would need investment of £3m over the next 30 years to bring them up to modern standards.

The council hopes to fund the work through prudential borrowing and will bid for a government grant from Homes England.

A consultation session to show the plans to residents was held on Wednesday ahead of submitting a planning application.

Most tenants have now moved out of the flats. Once they have all been re-homed, demolition work will begin and it is expected to take about two years to build the new houses.

Around 200 council houses have also been built on the site of the former Queens Park flats in Layton, following the demolition of the five tower blocks.

The final phase of the scheme is due to be handed over in the coming months.