Plans to build a dementia garden at a Kenilworth care home have been rejected by Warwick District Council.

Kenilworth Manor Care Home had also applied for permission to build a four-bed house to meet the "increased demand" for dementia support.

Owner Redwood Care Ltd said in its application that by 2025 there will be 11,000 dementia sufferers in the county and for the council to refuse permission constituted "indirect discrimination".

But planning officers said the visual and environmental impact of the house on the Grade-II listed manor outweighed the public benefits and refused permission for it and the garden.

WDC said the house was in an "incongruous and inappropriate siting," and had a "harmful impact on the setting of the nearby listed building".

Adding: "In the opinion of the local planning authority the proposed dwelling fails to harmonise or enhance the existing settlement, nor does it respond positively to its surroundings.

"The limited public benefits identified are not considered to outweigh this harm."

Alongside the new residential building, Redwood wanted to plant a dementia garden to provide "an environment that is stimulating and interesting" for the long-term benefit of dementia sufferers.

The application added it would: "Also provide their families and support staff a secure and interesting environment all can enjoy."

Whilst Redwood said the planting for the dementia garden would enhance the local environment, WDC said there was not enough detail in the plans.

Officers said: "Insufficient information has been provided to demonstrate that the proposed development would not lead to a net biodiversity loss."

Kenilworth Town Council, which objected to the application, added that it was the house that was the problem, not the dementia garden.

The council said: "Members had no issue with an enhanced dementia garden and queried the need to combine two distinct proposals in this way."

Kenilworth Manor Care Home has been approached for comment.

(Image by Ian Robb via geograph.org.uk)