Nine bids for former drug treatment centre

A former tuberculosis hospital could begin its latest reincarnation - as a hotel, healthcare centre or education site - by the end of the year.

The old Mundesley Hospital building, which was used as a drug and alcohol treatment centre until June, went on the market for �750,000 earlier this year after the charity running the clinic collapsed.

On Friday, agents charged with finding a new use for the site stopped accepting offers from potential buyers having already received nine bids.

Bidwells and Christie and Company will now report back to administrators Grant Thornton and expect them to make a decision in the next few weeks.

William Jones, head of Bidwells' Norfolk commercial team, said: 'We're quite pleased. The intention is to sell is as quickly as possible on an unconditional basis. It's highly unlikely they will accept an offer which is reliant on planning permission.

'It usually takes two or three months to exchange contracts on things like this. It may well be November or December before they have completed the purchase.'

Mr Jones said the 18.45-acre site had attracted local and national attention from a wide range of parties, including developers, and he was hopeful a suitable buyer would be found.

The agent said plans for a hotel and holiday village had been put forward as well as ideas for educational and medical uses.

The sale will go towards paying off �1.5m worth of debts to a number of creditors including banks and the Inland Revenue.

Adapt, the clinic's owners, hit funding problems in 2007 and began trying to sell it as a going concern in July last year.

When the Mundesley treatment centre closed, 18 patients had to be relocated and 30 members of staff lost their jobs.