Freemasons have got the go-ahead to turn a former courthouse into a temple.

Wisbech Masonic Benevolent Centre has been given planning permission to change the use of part of the prominent building on the town's Lynn Road.

It said in a planning statement no external work would be carried out on the property, near Freedom Bridge.

A planning officer's report said: "The scheme seeks to bring back into use a prominent building that has not been in use for some time, on a site noted in the Fenland Local Plan as being key to the regeneration of the town.

"The proposal would make good use of an existing building without the need for any external alterations and minimal internal alterations.

"Bringing the building back into use is considered to help maintain the vitality and viability of the town."

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Magistrates heard their last case in the wood-panelled courtroom in 2011, when the court was one of a number to close in a government cost-cutting drive.

But the police station which occupies part of the building is still operational.

The Cambridgeshire Constabulary occupies its half on a long-term lease at a rent of £1 per year until 2094. 

When the building went up for sale last year, the force said it had no plans to relocate.

The building, which opened in 1957, replaced the town's old South Brink police station.

Its exterior was designed to be in keeping with the Georgian architecture of the town centre and the Brinks.    

Plans show a lobby and bar, along with the main meeting room seating up to 140 including a master's chair, offices and a kitchen.

Three lodges and a masonic chapter currently meet at the current Masonic Rooms on the Crescent in Wisbech.