The battle over plans to turn an old bank chambers into a mosque will rumble on after a hearing into the long-running planning dispute was adjourned for a month.

A two-day hearing into the appeal against Sutton Council’s decision to refuse planning permission to build a mosque in Green Lane, Worcester Park, had been due to begin yesterday, November 19. However, a last-minute change meant it has been pushed back to December 12.

Permission for the site, to the delight of campaigners, had already been refused twice by Sutton Borough Council on the grounds it would bring an influx of traffic to the already over-congested high street area of the town.

Hugh Byrne, chairman of the Worcester Park Residents’ Association (WPRA) said: “It is just a distressing time for a lot of people “They worry about what could happen if this proceeds.

“Traffic is the problem.

“We’ve got a main road on one side of the site and a thoroughfare on the other “There is no parking. The only worse place to put it would be in a roundabout in the middle of the A3.”

The applicants are seeking to convert the building into a place of worship and also replace a garage door with a window and providing cycle facilities.

The long-running saga began in December 2012 and featured plans to convert the building into a place of worship for the local Muslim community.

Currently the nearest mosque is in Kingston.

 

The latest plans, also rejected by Sutton Council earlier this year, featured a reduced maximum capacity, from 140 to 95, and claimed travel plans would mean nobody would drive to the mosque as worshippers would either walk or take public transport.

The applicant also proposed the permission be granted on a temporary basis for four years to see how it worked out.

A decision had been expected to be made in the new year, but this delay will only push things back further.

A spokesman for Sutton Council said: “It is everyone’s right to appeal a decision.

“We believe we have managed a robust planning process.”