THE Mayor of Wantage tonight said he was "amazed" after a controversial retirement apartments scheme for the town was approved.

Vale of White Horse District Council's planning committee voted to approve the scheme six votes to five.

Renaissance Retirement has now said it hopes to begin demolishing the former Wantage Police Station and magistrates' court on Church Street in two months, and have 32 retirement apartments in its place in 12 months.

Wantage Town Council has been fighting the scheme because a survey commisioned by the Vale council concluded that that part of town was the only area Wantage town centre could expand into in coming years.

But the same council's planning officers tonight told the committee's councillors there were no planning grounds to refuse building retirement apartments there.

They also said the draft new Wantage Neighbourhood Plan, which recommends expanding the commercial town centre in that direction, was at too early a stage to be a valid planning consideration.

The committee batted away an option to defer the decision, which would have allowed the neighbourhood plan to progress further, on the grounds Renaissance Retirement could appeal against a "cynical" deferment.

Mayor StJohn Dickson, who spoke against the plans to the committee, said after the vote: "I'm amazed, I'm too emotional to speak really.

"The Vale are promoting neighbourhood plans, but once all the other towns and villages in the Vale find out about this, will they even want to carry on with theirs?"

The town council had hoped to demolish the police station buildings and promote a scheme creating a car park and new shops there.

Renaissance Retirement managing director Robert Taylor said: "We're delighted with the decision.

"We can build something Wantage will be proud of.

"There are a lot of people in favour of this scheme in Wantage as well."