A COMMUNITY group has had to resubmit plans for a £700,000 hall, pictured, after increasing the height of the building - by just 18 inches.

Lymington Community Association has been told to reapply for planning permission after council chiefs were told that the hall would be slightly taller than the version that had been approved.

The association wants to demolish a former library and replace it with a 200-seater complex that will be the town's largest community facility. New Forest District Council granted planning permission for the original design.

However, the authority has now told the association to submit a new scheme in a move that could delay the project by several weeks.

Association director Keith Cromar said: "When the engineers started work on the detailed drawings it became obvious that we would have to increase the thickness of the materials supporting the roof.

"We were faced with the choice of increasing the height of the building by 18 inches or lowering the internal ceiling."

Mr Cromar said the association went for the extra height and was told to reapply for planning permission because the new design differed from the one that had been given the go-ahead.

He added: "It won't be too much of a problem if the council approves the new application fairly promptly.

"Having to resubmit the scheme has resulted in a potential delay of three or four weeks but we're hoping the builders will make up the time during the summer."

Mr Cromar said he was "disappointed" that the council demanded a new application following such a small increase in height. A council spokesman said the authority had a duty to ensure that developers sought consent for proposed new buildings and any subsequent alteration to the design.

If the extra 18 inches are approved the new hall will be ready by December.

Most of the funding for the scheme is already in place as a result of two large legacies. Daphne Fuller left part of her £4m estate to the association and another former patron, Joyce McLellan, left the proceeds from the sale of her Pennington bungalow.

The legacies totalled almost £500,000, giving the association enough money to proceed with the project.

However, the organisation still has to raise about £60,000 to buy equipment for the new building.