Plans to change a domestic house into a hairdressing salon have been refused by the council.

Neil Greenlees, of Ribblesdale Avenue, Wilpshire, submitted an application with Ribble Valley Council in October, seeking permission for a change of building use and to convert a property on Birtwistle Terrace in Whalley Road, Langho into a hairdressers.

Under the plans, the salon would have been open Tuesday to Friday from 9am until 5pm and Saturdays from 9am until 3pm, and would have employed two full time members of staff.

There were also proposals to remove the small untidy garden area and replace it with paving and ornamental trees.

Objections were raised by Billington and Langho Parish Council, as well as from local residents who expressed concerns over parking and the fact there were already four hairdressers in the village.

Following a meeting of the council’s planning committee, a decision was made to refuse the application.

The decision notice stated: “Ribble Valley Borough Council hereby give notice in pursuance of the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 that permission has been refused for the carrying out of the above development for the following reasons:

“The proposed development would fail to consolidate, expand or round-off the existing concentration of commercial development within the area and would be sited within a predominantly residential setting. As such, the proposed commercial development would be an inappropriate and incongruous addition to the area that would fail to meet the aims and objectives of the Ribble Valley Core Strategy.

“It would result in an intensification of use of the property that would be largely incompatible with the residential character of the area. The proposed use of the application property as a business premises within a predominantly residential area would result in unacceptable levels of noise disturbance and disturbances from client vehicle parking, both of which would be of detriment to the amenity of neighbouring residents within the vicinity.”

The application was refused by the council on December 1.