A national house builder has been sent back to the drawing board after proposals to construct 56 new homes at a gateway site in Diss were rejected by councillors.

A national house builder has been sent back to the drawing board after proposals to construct 56 new homes at a gateway site in Diss were rejected by councillors.

South Norfolk Council's main planning committee yesterday refused the Persimmon Homes application for the former Bartrum's haulage depot site, in Victoria Road.

It comes after the local authority's south-west area committee expressed their concern about the density and number of car parking spaces for the 0.8ha brownfield site.

Planning officers had recommended approval of the scheme, which included a mixture of one, two and three bedroom houses and apartments.

Members of the full planning committee voted 12 to 3 against Persimmon's latest application. Previous plans for 73 flats on the former haulage depot were refused in January last year.