A gymnastics centre will be pulled down and replaced with two houses after a school said it would be unable to take over the facility.

Plans to replace the former Mullion Gymnastics Centre with housing had gone before a planning committee in April but were deferred after councillors asked whether the gym could be used by Mullion School which sits next door.

However, when the application came back before Cornwall Council’s west sub-area planning committee this morning councillors heard that the school had turned down the chance to take over the centre.

The applicant, A Punter, had put forward three options to the school – buying the building; leasing the building; or purchasing the steel building as a whole and relocating it in the school grounds.

Southerly Point Multi Academy Trust, which runs the school, said it was unable to take up any of the options.

The MAT’s chief financial adviser said: “After reviewing my report on the three options you provided to Mullion School regarding the current Mullion Gym, all parties consulted have now agreed that on this occasion neither of the three options meet Mullion School needs and therefore the Southerly Point Trust need to decline all three options. Many thanks for providing Mullion School with all three options before going out to the open market.”

Under the planning application the owner was seeking to build two new homes and to retain the manager’s accommodation to be used as a standard home.

Planning officers had recommended approval saying that it was a brownfield site and there was already planning permission in place for two homes to the south on a former part of the site.

The two new homes will be two storey and will be three-bedroom properties with parking spaces to the front.

Mullion Parish Council had objected to the plans and said they were concerned about the loss of a facility in the village.

Former Cornwall councillor for the area, Carolyn Rule, had also raised objections and, while still the local councillor, had requested the application be brought to the committee earlier in the year.

However the new Cornwall councillor for the area, Anthony Soady, said that he was in favour of the plans saying they were “aesthetically pleasing”.

He said: “It will provide much needed accommodation in Mullion and includes parking spaces for the building. I suggest supporting the application without hesitation. It is the right thing in the right place and I look forward to seeing it being built.”

Committee member Mike Thomas said he was “disappointed” that the school was unable to take on the gymnasium but said he understood why. He “reluctantly” proposed that the application be approved.

The committee voted in favour of the plans being granted planning permission.