PLANS have been submitted which, if approved, would see four new dwellings at the site of a former cinema.

An application has been submitted to Copeland Borough Council seeking planning approval for a residential development of four homes.

The former site of The Castle Cinema has been approved for housing developments previously but plans have consistently fallen through due to financial pressures.

KBE Homes Limited has submitted the most recent application. In their Design and Access Statement, they said: "The site has been boarded up for around 13 years now and is badly in need of development to tidy up this prominent part of the conservation area. Discussions with estate agents and potential development companies indicate that flats are still undesirable given the issues of leaseholds and communal area maintenance."

It is hoped that the current scheme is more saleable, tailored to more current with market needs and able to be phased, ie. Developers can develop part of the site and recuperate some investment before moving onto another phase of the development thus making it more affordable and less risk to lenders."

The public can view and comment on all applications submitted to Copeland Borough Council at: www.copeland.gov.uk/planning/application/42124850f1