The council has been urged to rethink plans to sell off a former primary school to make way for housing.

Halfway Houses moved out of its four-acre site on the Isle of Sheppey seven years ago when it relocated to nearby Danley Road.

But with its previous Southdown Road base set to be put on the market, Cllr Andy Booth (Con) is calling for it to be retained as a school to meet the Island’s growing need for places.

The former school building and 3.76 acres of playing fields, could be converted into a development of 60 homes.

The property, in Halfway, is made up of two plots of land in a mainly residential area.

An agent is to be appointed with a view to attract bids for the site in early 2024 with the sale completed in around a year, according to Kent County Council (KCC) papers.

They state: “The site has now been declared surplus and is capable of being progressed as a disposal – no other KCC service requirements have been identified for the site.”

Permission has been granted by the Secretary of State to sell the land.

“The site has now been allocated for residential development as part of the Local Plan adopted in July 2017 by Swale District Council. Indicative capacity has suggested the site is suitable for 60 x dwellings,” say the papers.

Money from the sale will be ploughed back into the council’s coffers.

The documents, published ahead of the Policy and Resources Cabinet Committee meeting on Wednesday (November 22), say that after the consideration of initial bids, ‘best and final’ offers may be requested.

“It is proposed to select the best submission that enables KCC to deliver the maximum capital receipt for the council.”

But Cllr Booth believes, with large developments in the pipeline nearby, there will soon be a need for a new primary school.

He said: "The infrastructure on the Island is adequate for now but I would object to any planning application on the Halfway Houses site.

“There are 600 homes on the way at Barton Hill Drive, which I objected to, which will put another hundreds of extra cars on the road.

"Halfway Houses is fit for purpose as a school and is worth more as a place of education than houses. There is a desperate need for education places locally."

Cllr Mike Whiting raised concerns about the extra traffic from the redevelopment and suggested the site might be suitable for sheltered accommodation.

KCC officers explained such impacts would be assessed through the planning process, and that the site was already allocated within the adopted Local Plan for housing.

The committee will be asked “to consider and endorse or make recommendations” over the site’s disposal.