Fire-damaged historic hotel now 'beyond repair'

The Allesley Hotel closed in 2022 and has fallen into a state of disrepair

A derelict hotel left "beyond repair" after it was devastated by two huge fires last year could be demolished for a new housing estate.

Developers Avant Homes want to build 62 homes on the site of the old Allesley Hotel on Birmingham Road, Coventry.

Part of the hotel dates back to the early 1800s and is considered important to the area's local history.

But the blazes in February and May destroyed many of the building's inside features, planning documents have revealed.

A planning report submitted to Coventry City Council by the housing company said fixtures and fittings that had survived the hotel's slide into disrepair are "lost or damaged beyond salvage".

Surveyors said the building is now "beyond repair" and should be knocked down

Last year, police said the two fires at the hotel, which closed in 2022, were believed to have been started deliberately.

Within the planning report, a survey confirmed the building had been hit by at least three arson attacks and "extensive" vandalism.

Floors and stairs are rotting, walls and ceilings are damp and mouldy, rooms are filled with rubbish, and much of the building is damaged and failing, it said.

The surveyors concluded the hotel was "beyond repair" and that knocking it down would be the "most appropriate outcome."

If the scheme is approved by the council, the hotel will be replaced by 44 houses and a block of flats containing 18 apartments.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations.