ONE OF Britain’s biggest housebuilders has unveiled plans to replace a Hampshire police station with more than 30 flats.

McCarthy and Stone wants to bulldoze the old Hythe police station and transform the site by building 35 one and two-bedroom retirement apartments.

Bosses are staging an exhibition in the village next week to gauge public reaction to the multi-million-pound scheme.

The two-storey complex in Jones Lane, Hythe, has been vacant since February, when officers moved to their new base at Hardley fire station.

McCarthy and Stone says the site offers an important opportunity to provide much-needed housing for older people.

According to the Office for National Statistics the number of New Forest residents aged over 65 will rise by 43 per cent over the next 20 years.

Housing experts say 140 units of specialist accommodation for older people need to be provided in the district every year.

Shane Paull, company regional managing director, said: “We want to hear from the local community and our future homeowners before we finalise our planning application.

“We will be displaying our proposals at the exhibition, where our project team will be on hand to answer questions and listen to feedback.

“The plans provide an important opportunity to deliver a sensitive residential development in an attractive location and we have sought to respect the characteristics of the local area when developing our design and landscaping proposals.”

McCarthy and Stone says the proposed development will give businesses in the area a major boost.

According to the company, independent research has shown that almost 80 per cent of McCarthy and Stone homeowners shop locally at least once a month.

The old police station, once home to a large number of uniformed officers and detectives, occupies a prime site opposite the entrance to Hythe Marina Village. A waterfront bungalow formerly owned by Sir Christopher Cockerell, inventor of the hovercraft, is only a few steps away.

Hythe is one of many communities across Hampshire that have lost their local police station.

In March last year Winchester City Council approved a McCarthy and Stone application to demolish the former Alresford police station and replace it with 15 two-bedroom retirement flats. The plans sparked 53 letters of support and only one objection

The Hytheproposals will be displayed at the parish hall in West Street on October 27 between 3pm and 7pm.