Councillors said they would have unanimously objected to plans to build retirement living homes on a former sports centre site in Witham.

Plans would have seen 60 of the homes contained in one building on the former Bramston Sports Centre site, in Bridge Street, just metres from a proposed Lidl store.

Those at the planning meeting last Tuesday strongly objected to the plans, with one council officer dubbing it the worst application he had ever seen.

Christopher Paggi said: “Quite frankly this application is one of the worst major applications I have seen in my time as a charted town planner.

“It’s not good enough for Witham, it isn’t good enough for the district and all I can say is we will be robustly defending those reasons for refusal at the public enquiry.”

However the application will now go to the Planning Inspectorate for appeal after Braintree Council missed its determination deadline.

If approved, 60 independent flats with a mix of one and two bedrooms would be built on part of the site, owned by Braintree Council.

The applicant, Churchill Retirement Living, has paid a fee of £20,199 for the application.

Speaking during the meeting, cllr Hylton Johnson said: “I was lucky, or unlucky enough, to work in the Soviet Union for many years and I thought I recognised some similarities in this building.

“Of the two I saw the buildings in the centre of Moscow for the workers and I have to say I would rather go and work in the Moscow-based unit, because the outlook from this is dreadful.

“These are people’s homes, where they are going to live for the last few years of their lives.”

Speaking after the meeting, Churchill Retirement Living’s Group land and planning director Andrew Burgess said: “We’re very disappointed with local Councillors’ response to our application.

"We believe in the quality of our design, which will help provide much needed housing options for older people in the area, and we will now be forced to pursue a five day Public Inquiry.

“Our proposed development will enable older people to downsize and free up more family housing for younger people in the area.

"It will provide high quality, secure, self-contained apartments in landscaped grounds, as well as creating jobs and providing benefits to the local economy.

"We believe it will make a valuable contribution to the area.”

Visit publicaccess.braintree.gov.uk and use reference 17/01145/FUL.