Cllrs have approved plans to demolish most of a largely vacant shopping centre.

East Staffordshire Borough Council's proposals for The Maltings in Uttoxeter will see the majority of the 1960s mall torn down.

A handful of retained units will be refurbished, with the cleared site being landscaped with new trees, planters and seating.

Members of the borough council's planning committee voted to approve the application at their meeting on Tuesday, while requesting improvements to some of the scheme's details.

Many of the units at The Maltings have been vacant for some time, and there have been concerns over the site being a magnet for vandalism and anti-social behaviour.

The borough council, which purchased the shopping centre last year, says the current scheme will resolve this issue and allow the site to remain in use while longer-term regeneration proposals are developed.

Town cllr Barrie Houlihan told the planning committee that people in Uttoxeter welcomed the application, but called for the new seating and planting to be of 'suitably high quality' and for the site to be well maintained going forward.

He said: "We welcome this application.

"The Maltings has long been a blight on the retail health of the town and we do appreciate the role of the borough council in taking ownership of The Maltings and allowing us to get to this stage.

"In recent months The Maltings has become a focus for anti-social behaviour and we want to make sure the cleared site isn't seen as simply another location for anti-social behaviour.

"It needs to be maintained and kept secure."

Architect Matt Rawlins said the scheme would help improve visitor's first impression of Uttoxeter, whether arriving by bus or car.

He said: "The goal was to improve connectivity between the High Street, the car park and the bus stop.

"At the moment it's very restrictive in terms of its view.

"The goal was to open it up.

"We've used a mix of hard and soft landscape to provide a flexible use for the area."

Units occupied by Edmonston's Family Butchers at the car park end of the shopping centre will be retained and refurbished, along with another section on the High Street.

A new brick wall with feature panels will be built to improve the High Street frontage, while 2.3 metre temporary hoardings will surround the rest of the site.

Planning committee members welcomed the plans but raised some concerns over details such as the cladding proposed for the retained units, which they suggested would not be in keeping with the surrounding area.

The committee voted to add a condition to give the chair, in consultation with the committee, final approval of the materials to be used.