CONTROVERSIAL plans to turn a convent into an Islamic teaching centre have been approved by Bolton planning chiefs.

Members of the planning committee voted to give the go ahead to the development, after hearing that the building on Williows Lane, Deane, would be likely to be demolished if it did not go ahead.

The decision dismayed around 40 residents, who turned up to the meeting to object to the proposals.

Some of them spoke up on behalf of the 2,000 people who had written letters in opposition.

Opponents to the scheme claimed it would create major traffic problems in the area and that the site was too small to cope with the colleges population of 100 boarding students and 30 day pupils.

It marks the end of a long running search for a new home for the Institute of Higher Islamic Education, currently based at the former Blair Hospital, Bromley Cross.

Previously, attempts to get permission for a new college on green belt land at Wingates had been turned down by the committee.

After the decision, trustee Yousuf Bhailoc said: "We are delighted with the result and would like to assure residents that we will be sensitive to their concerns.

"We have been in our current premises for 12 years and our neighbours do not want us to move out."

But he said the college's search for a site to create a new purpose-built centre would go on.

"Our aim in the long term remains to build a state-of-the-art building, but in the meantime, this will provide us with much better facilities."

Julie Cooper, of Clunton Avenue, Deane, said: "We are concerned about the increase in traffic this development will bring and the impact it will have on the people who live in the area. We think the decision is a disgrace."

The change of use will see around a dozen nuns moving out of the Mount St Joseph's convent.

Eight of them will be rehoused in other convents in Lancashire and Yorkshire, and four are looking for new homes after it was decided that the size of the building was too large to sustain such a small number of nuns.

Cllr Laurie Williamson told the planning committee: "The Wingates site was wrong for this college but I believe this is the right site.

"It has been used for educational purposes for around 100 years and will serve children in Bolton better than the colleges current home."

Cllr David Wilkinson added: "If this distinctive building was to go on the open market, it is likely it would be bought and flattened. This is a landmark that can be saved and used by part of the community."

But Cllr Andy Morgan said: "This building is significantly undersized for the number of pupils that it will cater for."

Cllr John Walsh added: "It is an over intensive use of the site and there are a number of reasons why we should refuse it."