A VANDALISED derelict school site in Newport will be redeveloped for homes, councillors decided.

Bellway Homes Wales and West was granted permission to build 24 homes on the site of the former Westfield School, in Malpas, at a planning committee meeting on Wednesday.

The school was left empty in 2001 when pupils with learning difficulties moved to the new purpose-built Maes Ebbw School, in Maesglas.

It was used again in 2003 by staff and pupils from Rogerstone Primary after their building was destroyed by a fire, but was vacant again three years later when they moved to a newbuilding.

Since then it has been amagnet for anti-social behaviour and was targeted by arsonists in 2009.

Councillor Bob Poole welcomed the redevelopment of the site, where demolition work is already under way.

He said: “Six or seven years it’s been lying in that position, it is absolutely awful.

“It is within a very good area in Malpas and it’s an area that does need housing, there’s no doubt about that.”

Cllr Valerie Dudley said she was concerned trees had to be removed to make way for the homes, which would affect the ecology of the area, she said.

But planning officers said this could not be helped because the site had to be re-levelled to make way for the homes, which would affect tree roots.

Councillors approved the plans on the understanding that investigations would be carried out to see if the council could make Bellway Homes carry out structural surveys on nearby homes.

Cllr John Richards requested that surveys be done before and after the work is completed to check for any damage caused by heavy-duty vehicles working on the site.