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Oakdale Comprehensive School closed its doors for the last time in 2016 when it was merged with Pontllanfraith Comprehensive to form Islwyn High School.

Pupils continued at the two sites under the new moniker until May 2017 when they moved into a new £25 million building on the site of Oakdale Colliery.

The school buildings on the Oakdale site were cleared (at a cost of £776,777) and the site now looks set for a new housing development.

Unlike other residential estates though, a private company will not be behind the plans. Caerphilly County Borough Council – under the banner Caerphilly Homes – will be the developer (with Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd contracted to do the actual building).

A maximum of 100 homes could be built on the site which is being dubbed an “eco village”.

The council has hired planning consultants Asbri Planning Ltd to carry out a pre-application consultation – which basically means getting people’s views before a formal application is submitted.

Although the council will be putting the eventual planning application in, the decision to allow the houses will still go through the usual process with the council’s planning committee making the decision based on planning law.

Half of the expected 100 homes will be social housing with 25 becoming new council homes for rent with another 25 being used for a shared ownership schemes – where people struggling to get on a property ladder get initial help from public funds.

The remaining half will go to private sale on the open market. According to documents prepared by Asbri Planning Ltd, there could be around 80 houses and 20 flats with occupancy of between two and six people. The development is expected to provide accommodation for a maximum of 414 residents.

It is unknown at this stage how much money Caerphilly County Borough Council could make from any potential house sales, but it has gone to the Welsh Government to ask for funding to get the project off the ground.

In September it was revealed the local authority had asked for £10.7m to fund a total of 210 new homes – including the Oakdale school site.

Details on what the houses will look like and the exact number will be finalised at a later date. After the public consultation, the initial application will be for outline planning – a general permission in other words. If approved by the planning committee it will then go forward for “reserved matters”, which is when the exact number of houses will be decided on.

The site of the development, according to the documents prepared by Asbri Planning, is within the development boundary within the council’s Local Development Plan – a blueprint for the area. This means it has already been designated an area where housing can go.

Full details can be viewed at asbriplanning.co.uk

Hardcopies of the application documentation are also available at Oakdale Library, Cwrt Cwmderwen, Oakdale, NP12 0HN. Please contact the library on 01495 223545 or liboakd@caerphilly.gov.uk and arrange an appointment time.

People have until November 26, to get their views in on the plans.