Proposals to build homes on a former hospital site look set to take a major step forward when they are brought before a committee next week.

Two separate proposals for the site could transform both the land surrounding St Clements Hospital, off Foxhall Road, and the building itself into more than 220 homes in years to come.

One of the applications, put forward by Chris Board of developers Landswood Ltd, is recommended for approval at an Ipswich Borough Council (IBC) planning committee meeting on September 21.

Up to 46 new homes could be built using the existing structure of the Victorian hospital if the plans are given the green light, and will be converted into town houses, apartments and duplexes.

A separate application for up to 179 homes put forward by a different company is currently at an earlier stage and will not be brought before next week’s meeting.

Neil MacDonald, a Labour councillor for St John’s ward where the site is located, said: “I think the Landswood development will be a sympathetic conversion of the hospital and now they are planning to preserve even more of the original buildings than before in their revised application.

“But residents do have a few concerns, and the first is that there could be a traffic issue on Foxhall Road. It’s a relatively busy road so adding to that problem isn’t a very popular idea.

“The second is that we already have a shortage of school places in north east Ipswich, and residents are worried this development will make that worse.

“But the Landswood proposal is much smaller and for less houses than the other application, so will have less of an impact on that.”

IBC said they could not comment ahead of the meeting.