A property law firm is trying for the second time to convert its upper floor offices in Burnham into a flat, in efforts to prevent a potential move from the building.

Brown & Co has applied for a change of use to turn the first and second floors of the building it occupies at 126 Station Road, currently offices, into a two-bedroom flat.

Similar plans from the company were turned down in September by Maldon District Council, as officers said it had not been demonstrated that the "use of the first and second floor offices for employment purposes is no longer viable".

But a design statement for the resubmitted application says it will not result in any loss of employment under the ownership of Brown & Co, as the upper offices are no longer in use due to remote working arrangements - introduced because of lockdown and retained as staff preferred the setup.

The statement says: "The ground floor continues to serve as the applicant's office base.

"Access to upper floors is exclusively via the ground floor office and the existing layout does not provide a simple means of altering this access.

"It is obviously not appropriate for the applicant to facilitate access through the ground floor office to accommodate other businesses operating from the upper floors.

"This would also not comply with building regulations - means of escape - and unlikely to be acceptable to any prospective businesses."

The company currently employs nine full-time staff, which would not change if the plans were approved, and has been operating out of the building since 2011.

The statement adds the upper floors are in a "poor state of repair", and the potential rental income from commercial use would "not financially warrant the investment to carry out the required works".

Converting the upper floors to resident use, it says, would provide "greater return" to facilitate this option.

It lists operating from the ground floor "with no use or income from upper floors, also incurring costs of remedial or repair works" or being "effectively forced to move the business" as the other two options available to bosses.

The statement continues: "The increase in residential use and retention of an established business is favourable to redundant first or second floor office space, with potentially limited marketability at some time in the future."

The only external alterations in the resubmitted proposal are a new door, with sidelight, and the replacement of the existing rear door with a small window.

The home would have a rear garden and on-street parking provision - no parking spaces are proposed under the plans.

Maldon District Council will make the final decision.

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