RICHARD Branson's £5.5million Virgin Life Centre has been sent back to the drawing board by Test Valley Borough Council because of planning concerns.

The council's southern area planning committee last night deferred its approval of the £5.5million project next to the M271 at Brownhill Way on the outskirts of Southampton, citing landscaping and design problems.

Committee vice-chairman Anne Burrows said: "We're trying to get something distinctive, welcoming and individual."

"It's an example of bad architecture, it's a very severe structure, the design is very industrial.

"The parish council feels that it's an inappropriate development.

"It's a gateway site, it's a very prominent site and they feel that it's going to degenerate into one more motorway service station and I feel that as a gateway site it's impicit on Test Valley that it's individual and welcoming.

"At the moment it would repel any motorist and speed him on his way."

She said it was up to the applicant, Glencarron Properties, which is working on behalf of Virgin, to revise the plans that it had. But it does have the right to appeal directly to the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions.

"But whether that's in the firm's best interests is another thing," she said.

"That would be fairly foolish, it is a big company, it should take into account the decision of the planning committee and the residents' views."