THIRTY-one new social housing units are to be built in east Belfast after planning approval was granted by the city council.
Members of Belfast City Council's Planning Committee approved the proposals at a meeting yesterday, giving the green light for 15 townhouses and 16 apartments.
The social housing units will be constructed in the Woodstock/Beersbridge Road area of the city, and the planning proposals also include car parking facilities and landscaping among associated site works at the location.
Meanwhile, members of the committee also granted approval for an extension at Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School in north Belfast.
The school, which is situated in the Antrim Road area, will now get a three-story extension that will house 12 new classrooms.
The development is part of the School Enhancement Programme announced by the Department of Education in 2013.
The school site will also see a new bridge link built from the extension to the existing school building, along with the reconfiguration of parking spaces and additional play areas.
Welcoming the new developments, the chair of the Planning Committee, Carl Whyte, said it was "really positive news for Belfast and in particular the communities in east and north Belfast".
The SDLP councillor added: "Access to affordable social housing makes a real difference to people’s lives and will enable communities like those in both the Woodstock and Beersbridge Road to thrive."
He added: "Schools and homes are the essence of our local communities and really improve the social fabric of the area."
