A church could be demolished and replaced by new homes.

An application to turn Parkfields Baptist Church in White Horse Avenue, Halstead, into three new homes has been submitted to Braintree Council.

The blueprints suggest the church building should be removed completely to allow room for two and one bedroom houses.

Westmount Property Services, which is acting on behalf of the applicant, says it has taken on pre-planning advice due to initial fears from housing officers about extra housing leading to overdevelopment.

The planning statement adds: "The church is currently occupied by a nursery group under a short lease and the retention of the church building is no longer economically viable.

"As the church is town centre located the principle of re-development is noted as being acceptable.

"The current church building is of modest design and has a high maintenance requirement which reflects the era in which it was constructed.

"The church building is located close to the White Horse Road frontage and has a private play area and car park to the rear.

"It is proposed to demolish the existing church building and erect two three bedroomed houses and one two bedroomed house.

"The design of the units will reflect the surrounding architecture with part render and part face brick walls, concrete tiled roofs and windows."

An application to demolish the nearby church hall and build three chalet style homes elsewhere on the site was approved back in 2013.

The church has previously been home to several pre school groups, including Little Angels pre school and Parkfields.