A PLANNING application has been submitted to change a former school for children with special educational needs into a business.

The school at Merryhay House at Ilton Business Park closed in August after a decline in student numbers with only three on its roll.

Now, a change-of-use planning application has been submitted to South Somerset District Council so it can be remarketed for business use.

A statement from Greenslade Taylor Hunt on behalf of applicant Chris Dunn said: “The school has previously operated as a day school for students with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties with capacity for ten students.

“This is a highly specialist use for which local demand has substantially declined, and it’s unlikely that an alternative occupier could be found under the same, or similar, use.”