PLANS to build 20 student bedsits and new shops alongside a busy Worcester road have been rejected.

Thornton Architects wanted to build the accommodation – each with its own bathroom – on the corner of Barbourne Road and St George’s Lane North.

In order to carry out their plans they wanted to demolish an existing 1870s building which currently houses Sansome Flooring and replace it with a new and bigger building on the same site.

But Sansome Flooring, which signed a four-year lease for the premises last year, raised concerns about the impact the construction of the new building would have on its business and the possible job losses it might incur.

Questions were also asked at a meeting of the Worcester City Council planning committee about why there was a need to completely demolish the building, which is structurally sound and, while not actually in a conservation area, stands on the borders of one.

This was also a concern echoed by local people.

They raised a number of other objections to the plans, including a loss of privacy, inadequate parking, increased noise and the possibility of anti-social behaviour.

Planning officers were also worried by the overall design and layout of the building – especially when it came to disabled access.

Alan Coleman, planning manager, said: “Our concerns are that none of the rooms are big enough for a disabled bathroom. What’s more, the allotted parking space is in a bad position, being furthest away from the entrance to the bedsits.”

Mr Coleman also pointed out the layout of roof terraces had not been entirely thought through, because one person’s window would face out onto another’s terrace.

The planning committee voted unanimously to reject the proposal.