PLANS to replace a former doctors' surgery with nine apartments have been rejected by councillors.

St Vincent's Housing Association wanted to build a three-storey building of nine two-bedroom flats at the site in Stoneclough Road, Kearsley.

Bolton Council's planning and highways committee heard the flats would share an access off Oakes Street which is used by two existing apartment blocks at the rear of the site.

The car park used by residents of those blocks would be extended to create an extra 11 spaces for the new apartments.

Ten residents objected to the scheme and Bill Collison, a former borough councillor for the area who lives in Bolton Road, told the committee the apartment block was "not in keeping" with the surrounding two-storey buildings.

"It would stand out like a sore thumb," he said. He also felt that parking provision appeared to be inadequate.

Councillors took exception to the proposed closure of a public footpath to enable the access road to be widened to 4.5 metres, a move Cllr Norman Critchley described as "appalling".

Council highways engineers, who had proposed the solution, said pedestrians could access the new apartments from Bolton Road using a walkway at the side of the building.