It is hoped that work on the construction of 212 homes can begin soon after Angus Council’s development standards committee considered the detailed proposal this week.

Under the plans, there will be 28 affordable homes built on the Ashton Terrace side of the site, with an additional £700,000-plus being commuted for more social housing elsewhere in Angus.

The education contribution from the scheme will be almost £2 million, a large part of which will be used to increase the capacity of Strathmartine Primary School, The Courier reports.

The project is to be phased over six years.

Planning agent Robert Evans said Miller Homes and Chamberlain Developments welcomed the conditional approval recommendation from officials.

“It has been a long, winding and bumpy road,” he said.

Councillors unanimously backed the official green light recommendation.

With the site having been a magnet for vandals since NHS Tayside closed Strathmartine’s doors in 2003, Angus councillors say lessons must be learned over the saga surrounding a lack of security at the abandoned premises.

Montrose SNP councillor Bill Duff said: “We often talk about win/win situations, but I think here we have a quadruple win.

“The NHS has obviously received a significant bounty for the site. There is a plus for the council with social housing and significant money going in to primary and secondary education.

“And there is a win for the fire service and police because Strathmartine Hospital has been a huge burden on both of those with fire-raising and vandalism over many years.”