PLANS to tackle the lack of childcare facilities in Selby have been dashed.

Nick and Anthea Porter want to open a nursery on the former Longwood Hospital site at Selby Common after problems finding nursery places for their own two children.

But Selby councillors have rejected the application, saying the site is too isolated, has no public transport and is outside the village development boundary.

The Porters, from Cawood, who run their own computer consultancy, said today they were extremely disappointed by the decision and were considering an appeal.

They said their plans would transform the empty warehouse buildings on the three-acre site into a 50-place nursery, indoor and outdoor play areas, offices, caf and parking spaces.

It would be open seven-days-a-week and offer a safe, pleasant rural environment.

The couple argued that people living in nearby villages such as Cawood, Wistow and Thorpe Willoughby often had to travel a long way to find nursery places for their children, and that the nearest large play facility was in Garforth.

They said their own children had gone to a nursery at Barkston Ash.

Mr Porter said the site was on a commuter run and would be convenient not only for parents who work in Selby but also York, Leeds and Doncaster.

But members of the district council's planning committee said the site, which used to house an agricultural machinery repair and sales shop, was unsuitable.

Committee chairman Coun Jack Crawford said: "We have concerns about its isolated setting, parking, the lack of public transport and the effects of noise on a neighbouring resident.

"We accept there's a shortage of nursery places, but we had no choice but to reject it."

Mr Porter said today: "We have put in an awful lot of effort into this application, which will also create 30 jobs.

"The site is becoming an eyesore and we believe we have answered all the council's questions."

Updated: 13:08 Saturday, January 18, 2003