PLANS to build a village for the over-55s on a site which formerly housed a British Legion Club have been withdrawn – dealing a blow to the council's plans for more housing in the area.

Developers DBL Ltd had put forward proposals for a large housing village consisting of 46 properties.

But this week, Copeland Borough Council revealed that the plans had been withdrawn.

The scheme was to be formed of 11 bungalows and 35 apartments, situated on what is currently a cleared site located centrally within the village of Distington.

The British Legion Club was originally located on the site, but it was demolished several of years ago.

The site has not been built upon since the club's demolition.

With the withdrawal, the push from Copeland Borough Council to provide new housing suitable for the area’s “changing demographics” has been setback.

The development would have formed part of the Copeland Core Strategy, which recommends new housing that caters for the changing demographics within the local and wider area.

The strategy states there is a need for “more older person housing to facilitate fluidity allowing for down sizing and a release of larger properties for larger families”.

The council announced the news that the plans had been withdrawn on social media.

“A planning application (ref 4/21/2117/0F1) for an apartment block and 11 bungalows on the site of the British Legion in Distington has been withdrawn.

“We are notifying the community of this application withdrawal due to the high levels of interest it has attracted.”

DBL Ltd had previously stated: “The new development proposed for the Legion land is a unique opportunity for a significant project of community led homes. DBL Ltd’s vision is to turn this wasteland in the centre of our village into a high quality housing development.

They also vowed that the development would become set an example for future schemes.

“We want to build innovative, state of the art, dementia friendly and future proof housing for the over-55s. The development will enable residents to stay in their village rather than having to move out of area for appropriate housing. It will enable people who have, or had a local connection to Distington, to return to the village.” DBL Ltd were contacted but were unavailable for comment.