Former school up for sale to save council cash

Hough Lane Centre in Bramley, Leeds, was a school from 1888 to 1967

A Grade II listed former Leeds school is set to be auctioned off to help the council balance its books.

A Leeds City Council report said the Hough Lane Centre in Bramley, which is currently used as office space, could be turned into housing following the sale.

Documents said the 1,494 sq m (16,081 sq ft) building had been declared surplus to requirements by the authority and was in the process of being vacated.

On Wednesday, it was announced that the authority faced a £273m budget gap over the next five years.

No operational reason could be found for the council to keep the building, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said, with the move said to increase housing provision and create job opportunities.

The papers added: “The Hough Lane Centre is Grade II listed and so will be costly to keep in a state of good repair.

"It is also a very large site which requires a lot of energy consumption to keep in occupation - disposal of this will also alleviate these costs.”

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