A FORMER school could be turned into a hotel, health centre or spa, a council has said.

Brighton and Hove City Council planning officials put forward the preferences for Grade II listed St Aubyns School in Rottingdean.

The school, which is just off the village’s High Street, closed in April 2013 after 118 years.

Following its closure, residents concerned about the site’s future approached the council.

Rottingdean Parish Council, the Cothill Educational Trust, which owns the site, and the city council have drawn up a planning brief to shape future development of the site.

The school features a number of listed features including its main building which is Grade II listed, a boundary flint wall and a sports pavilion.

Attached to the school is also a rare listed chapel, built in 1913. Children who attended the school are depicted in its stained glass windows and inside there is a First World War soldiers’ memorial.

Rudyard Kipling’s son John, a former pupil, was killed in the war and is commemorated in the chapel.

The school also had cricket nets, tennis courts and extensive grounds.

The planning brief states any redevelopment should retain and re-use the existing listed main building and chapel and that there should be public access to the playing field.

It also outlines a number of possible uses for the site, including residential institutions, another school, hotel, health centre or spa.

The brief recommends that any building should not be higher than three storeys and must have community benefits.

The planning brief will go to the city council’s economic development and culture committee on June 19.

If voted through it will go out for public consultation in September for six weeks.

Councillor Geoffrey Bowden, chairman of the committee, said: “The document sets out development principles for this important site that will respect the character of existing buildings and the conservation area while meeting the needs of the community.

“We have worked with the parish council, the landowner, local councillors and residents to create a brief that reflects their aspirations.

“The brief aims to be a realistic guide for developers to come forward with proposals that would also breathe new life into the site's historic assets.”