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A £2.5 million extension and improvements scheme for Oakhaven Hospice in Lower Pennington Lane, Lymington should be refused, say planning officers.

Council officers say that while new provision for patient care can be treated as a special exception for building in the green belt, there can be no such exception for a 50-seat education centre. And they say additional car parking spaces would also be of concern, being "clearly visible from the adjacent National Park".

Because two parts of the plan fail, officers are recommending the council's planning committee refuses the total plan when it meets on Wednesday.

Hospice trustees want to build a new in-patient unit linking the original hospice building and Pennington Chase House. The original hospice layout would be revised and a separate single storey extension added increasing the number of beds from eight to 12.

Pennington Chase would be modified to form an out-patients' suite, multi-function activity room and complementary therapy room. A conservatory would be added and the gardener's cottage demolished and replaced with the one-and-a-half storey education building.

The trustees say the eight-bed in-patient unit is run at capacity and existing levels do not allow for growth in demand in an area which has higher than average deaths through cancer and other illnesses. It also does not provide a respite facility.

The education centre would not only help with the understanding of terminal illnesses, but also provide an income for the hospice.

Planning officers agree the in-patient facilities "meet a clear local need" and there would be "special circumstances" for construction in the green belt.

But the education centre got the thumbs down because it would not be "essential for the continuing effective operation of the hospice".

Oakhaven fundraising director Mike Denny was aware of the council's concerns about the education centre.

"We are naturally disappointed that our case for this much needed aspect of our project, which was highlighted by a major service evaluation among local health care professionals last year, is being questioned.

"It is our belief that an on-site education facility is the most efficient and logistical option for us to ensure that this very necessary and core part of our service is delivered.

"We will continue to discuss this with the planners and remain optimistic of a positive conclusion to the benefit of our local community."

2:01pm Friday 9th May 2008

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