CHESHIRE East councillors are being recommended to approve plans for retirement homes at Knutsford at today’s (Wednesday) Northern Planning Committee.

The McCarthy and Stone scheme is earmarked for land at Northwich Road, and would see the demolition of Memorial House.

A report to the committee said Memorial House, a cottage hospital, was built as a First World War memorial, had not been used as a hospital for a number of years and was currently used by the Red Cross.

The report said the building was not suitable for conversion, and subject to conditions over the recording of the building and the provision of a memorial garden its loss was considered, on balance, acceptable.

The application is recommended for approval, subject to confirmation from the National Planning Casework Unit that the scheme could be determined.

The unit has received a request to ‘call-in’ the application to the Secretary of State.

See the Guardian website, and next week’s edition, for a report on the committee meeting.