A SCHEME to transform a prominent corner of the central Highcliffe shopping area has been approved.

The plans for Sea Corner in Highcliffe, which sits on the intersection between Lymington Road and Waterford Road, include replacing the window of the rundown Sea Corner Italian restaurant and creating a more prominent frontage to the eatery.

The mixture of residential and commercial premises include the Scullery Tearooms and Highcliffe Watchmakers, which are currently occupied and trading while The Cutting Shop barbers, restaurant and Sea Corner Guesthouse, lie empty.

The developers are proposing turning the first floor bedrooms of the guesthouse into two flats, while also renovating the existing second-floor flat.

They also want to remove the staircase at the joint entrance of the barber shop and maisonette and putting in a new one at the rear of the building.