DOZENS of luxury homes are due to be built on a hospital site that has been sold for more than £10m.

Land occupied by the former Lymington Hospital has been purchased by Try Homes following the opening of a new 107-bed complex on the outskirts of the town.

As reported in the Daily Echo, an application to replace the old hospital with 41 three and four-bedroom homes has already been granted.

Half the cash from the sale of the land will be used to buy new medical equipment for the £36m Lymington New Forest Hospital, which received its first patients just after Christmas.

The rest will be used to refurbish other health care buildings in the county.

Last month the Daily Echo revealed that Try Homes was rumoured to have bought the old Lymington Hospital site for £10.3m and intended to build 41 luxury homes on the site.

The Surrey-based developer has now confirmed that the deal has gone through. Work on the scheme, which will transform the two-acre site in Southampton Road, Lymington, is due to begin in three months' time.

Paul Cooper, managing director of Try Homes, said: "Our company has a track record of providing high quality new homes to brownfield (previously developed) land across the south east.

"We are genuinely looking forward to working in Lymington and anticipate demolition and construction work will start in April. We believe the redevelopment of the former hospital site is a very positive move for the town as it will benefit from first class new hospital services, in addition to a stylish collection of new homes."

A Hampshire Primary Care Trust said: "We have secured an excellent deal for what was a highly sought-after site."