After 14 years of failed proposals, Stroud District Council planners have approved an application to transform a derelict hospital site into a housing development.

Specialist developer, PJ Livesey Group gained the approval for the re-development of the former Standish Hospital site on the outskirts of Stonehouse.

The Manchester firm originally submitted the application in 2017, but lodged a re-design last year.

Standish House and Park has been subject to a long-standing saga over its future use. Over recent years, various proposals have been submitted for the site but until now, none were approved.

The hospital dates back to World War One, where it became a sanatorium for the treatment of TB patients by the Red Cross.

The 32-acre site came under NHS ownership in 1948, providing specialist orthopaedic, rheumatology and respiratory care across the county.

After a serious overspend, the hospital was closed in late 2004 and has since fallen into a state of neglect.

Forty-eight homes will be formed by converting and demolishing parts of the grade-two listed Standish House and the hospital's art-deco style ward buildings as well as the gate lodge on Horsemarling Lane, Stonehouse.

A further ninety-nine new build homes have also been approved for construction within the Park's grounds.

The application said: "The proposed new buildings have been designed to maximise the potential of the stunning rural context, both internally and externally."