An iconic pair of buildings with permission to become 22 new homes have gone on the market for a combined £1.175 million.

The former Courtauld boiler buildings off Factory Lane West, Halstead, has been put up for sale by owners Courtauld Property Ltd.

The building comes with planning permission to convert them into 12 two-bed and ten one-bed luxury flats.

Plans to convert the buildings into homes were given the go ahead back in July last year.

However, there has been little movement on the project since Braintree Council gave its approval and it seems the transformation of the building will not begin until a new owner is found.

Permission to turn the boiler houses into flats will expire by July 19, 2020.

Laura Marszalek, of Joscelyne Chase which is marketing the property, said: “We have had quite a lot of interest. There’s a lot of history there and its been a big part of the town for so long.”

The buildings were built as a power and boiler house unit in 1922 as part of the expansion of Courtauld Factory.

They were built to serve the enormous factories that were situated to the north and west of Halstead, which were eventually demolished in the Eighties.

In 1985, the boiler houses along Factory Lane West became home to Maycast-Nokes.

The engineering company was based at the site until 2009 before it moved to the other side of the road.

The former boiler houses have remained empty ever since.

The plans include parking spaces and ground floor gardens with others having balconies looking over the River Colne