PLANS for a community hub at a former infant school on a deprived area of Portland have been given the green light.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council approved Portland Town Council’s plans to turn the former Brackenbury Infants School in Fortuneswell into a community hub under delegated powers.

The council, which recently purchased the site from Dorset County Council submitted a planning application in May in the form of a change of use of the building from an infant school to a community hub, Portland Town Council Offices and nursery.

Commenting on the plans, case officer Darren Rogers said that the proposal was considered acceptable and was a suitable reuse of the former school building.

The building was constructed in 1991 and is described in a council report as still being in “relatively good order” however the school site has been vacant since 2013, when the infant school moved out of the premises to the newly-constructed Chesil Cove School.

A comprehensive business case was then put forward by Portland Town Council last summer to Dorset County Council to create a community hub which will see new offices, storage, a hall and car park use for the town council, an internet café with assistance providing computer and scanning facilities, adult education courses in skills for the workplace (IT, literacy, numeracy etc) and a hall and a studio/classroom for hire to the community and service providers. Alongside this, the hub would also provide a new site for Allsorts Nursery which is currently located adjacent to the current premises.

The new plan will include four large classroom areas, a larger play area as well as access to the hall so that children can participate in shared activities.

The expansion will also allow Allsorts to expand its provision to include day care for babies and toddlers and parent and toddler sessions linking with parenting skills activities and courses.

After considering the business case, Dorset County Council then agreed to dispose of Brackenbury Infants School in Fortuneswell to the town council for £100,000 at a cabinet meeting last month.