A NEW arts and entertainment centre has been approved for the listed Sherborne House.

The decision has been described as ‘brilliant news’ for the town’s economy - also saving the crumbling building.

Dorset Council’s area planning committee unanimously agreed the application during an online meeting (on Tuesday).

It will allow for repair and extensions of the grade one listed building at Newland to provide

exhibitions and event spaces, office use, and restaurant/café/bar spaces.

The application was welcomed by Sherborne councillors Matt Hall and Jon Andrews.

“I would like to thank everyone involved. It’s about time this building was revamped and re-used ... I can only say this is brilliant for the town, the economy will benefit and the footfall in the town will increase,” said Cllr Andrews.

Cllr Hall said he would like to encourage the centre to ask visitors to use the main Culverhayes car park to help avoid congestion, rather than smaller car parks nearby. Both councillors have asked to be involved with the Sherborne House Trust project as the scheme progresses.

Said Dorchester planning committee member Cllr Les Fry: “It looks like an exciting project for Sherborne and the whole area. If it goes ahead it will attract people from a wide area.”

He and Weymouth councillor Brian Heatley both asked for renewable energy schemes to be included in the project as the work progresses, although Dorset Council has no legal authority to require it without changes in legislation.

The building, which dates to the 1720s, is on the Historic England Buildings at Risk register and was last used as a girl's school in 1992 having been bought by the former Dorset County Council in the 1930s.

Councillors were told that allowing the conversion and new additions will give “significant public benefit” and regenerate an under-used site, protecting the main building and associate coach house for the future.

A striking extension is proposed to the rear of the site featuring a distinctive copper roof, providing a multi-use space. Green ‘living’ roofs are also planned on some extensions.

The Tudor wing of the house is expected to provide a new county headquarters for Dorset Visual Arts giving them office space, room for artists and an area for sales.

Outside space will include the creation of a courtyard and grassed amphitheatre which could be used for performance, or to picnic.

A report to the area committee said that the building has suffered from a lack of investment and has been left in need of considerable repair.

After the school closed an Arts Trust was set up in the mid-1990s but failed to raise enough to establish a viable centre.

The whole site had been sold to a developer and 44 homes were built to the rear of the House. The remainder of the site was then bought by the Sherborne House Trust .

A large, contemporary extension is proposed to the north side of the House to create a courtyard to the rear of the Tudor wing, providing further exhibition and events space. The Tudor and Digby wings to the west will house a bistro, café, storage, a kitchen and a plant room. Also proposed is a new entrance canopy to the front linking the Tudor Wing to the main house.

Sherborne town council welcomed the plans but asked for more detail about traffic management around the site, parking spaces, trees, and sewage capacity. It would also like to see some restrictions on late night use to protect nearby residents, although that is expected to be dealt with at the licensing stage.