Work has started on the transformation of a closed Lochaber medical facility into new affordable housing.
The Belhaven Ward on Fort William’s Belford Road shut down in early 2013 – and now demolition teams have moved in to clear the site.
Lochaber Housing Association and Highland Council are working in partnership to turn the ex-NHS Highland ward into 13 housing units.
The ward was a stand-alone facility from nearby Belford Hospital and, for much of its history, was the town’s main in-patient service.
In 2010, it was converted into a base for outpatient physiotherapy and occupational therapy services in Fort William.
Ownership of the site was transferred from NHS Highland to the council last year.
The housing development will be made up of five bungalows, specially designed for people in wheelchairs, while the remainder of the site will be made up of a block of eight flats with either one or two beds.
The site is due for completion in September this year.
The future plans are partly funded by the Scottish Government as part of its house-building programme across the country.
Social justice secretary Alex Neil said: “House building is at the heart of this government’s long-term economic plan.
“That is why, rather than leaving surplus public sector land idle, we want to see it being put to good use.
“I am delighted that by releasing this surplus NHS site and keeping it in the public sector for Highland Council to develop affordable housing, it will allow the delivery of much needed new homes in the Fort William area.
“Vacant land and property which was previously in public sector ownership – such as by NHS Scotland and Police Scotland – is being used to add to the provision of affordable housing across Scotland.”
The work is one of a number of affordable housing projects under way in the area with Lochaber Housing Association developing sites at Strontian and Kilchoan, as well as at Riverside and Heathercroft in Fort William.
The council is also understood to be planning developments for two new sites in the High Street, while Lochyside Roman Catholic Primary School is also due to be turned into about 50 homes once it closes later in the year.