A ONCE-THRIVING derelict pub could be knocked down to make way for an apartment block if new proposals get the green light.

Developer Broompark Management has applied for permission to knock down The Plough, in Prestwich, to make way for 15 new flats.

If granted the Salford-based firm will demolish the former watering hole and put up a four-storey apartment building on the site, including six one-bedroom and nine two-bedroom apartments.

Approval was given for a 10-apartment block scheme in 2015, but was ultimately not thought to be financially viable.

The Plough was a popular social hub in the area for many years.

But it shut in 2011 under controversial circumstances after the then pub landlord was jailed for cocaine smuggling.

It has since fallen into dereliction and become a magnet for anti-social behaviour and vandalism.

But a design and access statement submitted by agents Edifice Building Consultants Ltd says the project will have a positive impact on the appearance of the area.

It says the scheme will provide an “improved aesthetic by replacing the defunct Plough Inn which is currently an eyesore”.

And the statement continues: “The prevailing style of architecture in the immediate vicinity of the development site has no specific architectural merit.

“The surrounding properties are generally set over two stories and are configured in rows of terraces or semi-detached.

“Overall the residential areas directly behind the site and further up Rainsough Brow are repetitive and monotonous.

“The proposed development would therefore seek to bring some much-needed variety to the local street-scape by introducing panels of render and contrasting brick in the elevation.”

And it adds that the appearance will be sympathetic to the immediate area. The predominant red brick being chosen to “complement the church at the top of the hill”.

The scheme is also said to create an opportunity to create more variety in the architectural mix of the area, which is currently dominated by semi-detached and terraced dwellings.

The scheme is also said to create an “opportunity to create variety within the overall architectural vernacular of the surrounding area.

The application is accompanied by a crime impact statement put together by Design for Security – consultants based within Greater Manchester Police.

It describes The Plough as a "derelict public house building in a poor state of repair” and notes that the crime and anti-social behaviour are more likely to occur in places that do not appear to be under supervision.

It adds that the scheme would have a positive impact on crime and the fear of crime in the area.

The report states: “The proposed development will bring a vacant site back into use and will provide additional activity, overlooking and surveillance to the area, at all times of the day and night.”