A WESTHOUGHTON firm has been given 10 days to dig up its car park or face prosecution from Bolton Council.

Planning bosses ordered aerospace engineers Bellhouse Hartwell to stop work on the car park extension at Lower Leigh Road after the company ignored strict planning regulations.

The planning department is currently issuing a "stop and enforcement" notice on the company but Bellhouse Hartwell said the problem will be rectified within 10 days.

Plans were approved for the site in January after Bellhouse Hartwell claimed an extension to the car park would win them a multi-million pound contract that would create 100 jobs. But residents complained that the car park was being built higher than expected and last week an amended plan to incorporate the sudden changes was thrown out by the council.

The company must now revert back to their original plan approved by the council, which means digging up soil, removing lamps and getting rid of extra building materials A council spokesman said: "Bellhouse Hartwell has assured us that they will remove materials they have brought on to the site and they will reduce the level of the car park." They also have to uproot a series of lighting columns after contractors erected 15 when only four were approved. The spokesman added: "Basically, they got planning permission for a split level car park with four lights but what they built was a sloping car park with 15 lights. After a meeting with planners and the car park contractors on Friday, the company agreed to start work removing the materials on Tuesday and expect to take 10 days."

He added: "Our process of preparing stop and enforcement notices is still in place, however, and if they do not do the work as promised enforcement action will be taken. If they complete in advance of the notice and adhere to the original plans no action will be pursued."

Cllr David Wilkinson, who voted to throw out the amended application, said: "It's a strange how-you-do that a company has gone and done all that work and now has to go back and change it. So many different things had been done without permission -- we're not talking just a few things here --- the company has gone totally contrary to the plans it received approval for." "Bellhouse Hartwell could have done this in the first place and could have had the work almost finished by now. I think this sends a message to other companies that certain behaviour won't be tolerated and it brings into question the policy carried out by the council. "

Despite repeated attempts by the BEN to speak to Bellhouse Hartwell, they declined to comment.