A POPULAR children’s play centre is to close down – and its owner says the venture will see her lose her life savings of £85,000.

Virna Browne, the founder of Little Playtown in Fountains Mall, Odiham, said she was heartbroken to have to shut down.

The business has to close as the landlord, Jeremy Saunders, has served an eviction notice after a noise abatement notice was issued by Hart District Council following complaints from traders in the shops below.

Mrs Browne claims the stress of trying to keep her business open – which consisted of a nursery, café, party room and areas where children could role play – had brought her to the brink of a breakdown.

She says she is not sure when the order will take effect, but it will mean her staff of 10 will lose their jobs.

Nick Steevens, the head of regulatory services at Hart District Council, said the authority was made aware of a noise nuisance at Little Play Town in November 2017.

“Site investigations started from January and following the investigation, it was concluded noise nuisance was occurring,” he said.

“The council issued a noise abatement notice and since then we have been working with the business owner to investigate solutions to reduce the impact of noise resulting from the poor quality of flooring in the building.

“Because of the limitations of the building structure, listed building consent was required to implement the proposed solution, and structural concerns needed to be evaluated.

“The consent was recently refused because of the lack of detail provided to demonstrate how the proposal will impact on the structure of the building and will not result in harm to the character of the listed building.

“Throughout this case, the council has worked proactively with both parties to try to find a resolution and give reasonable time to address the issue. Supporting local businesses is a key priority for the council.”

Mrs Browne said she and her husband Clinton had tried to carry out £20,000 of sound proofing on the listed building.

After talks with her MP, the parish council and Odiham councillors, she applied for a grant to help pay the £20,000, but it was not granted.

She said she had to cancel a party for disabled children because she alleged traders had complained about the noise it would make.

Mrs Browne said: “We are so sad Little Play Town is being closed. Creating the nursery was a dream come true and I’m forever grateful for every happy moment and every kind word said to me.

“It has come to light, after working diligently with the council, the building has foundational issues and although  we have tried every soundproof solution currently available, we cannot fix it.

“We had no idea the building would provide issues when we signed the lease and we never had any intention to make a noise and upset anyone.

“We’ve been working every day for more than a year to rectify the problems the neighbours have had, but frustratingly the council turned down the planning application to put steel plates and pavement slabs in to hold the very heavy soundproof floors, which weigh 100kg per square metre.

“We were completely unaware that when anyone walks on the floors, the noise could be heard below.

“We feel we have been treated very unfairly by some of those opposed to our business.”

Mrs Browne said she had “professional sound testing” conducted and that the results showed the levels were “within normal limits” for residential and commercial building regulations.

“But the council decided these professional tests were not good enough,” she said.

“We’ve come to realise the neighbours weren’t willing to give us a chance and work with us.

“In the end, my husband tells me my health is more important than the business which I love so much.

“I’m not sure when we will close – whether it’s a week or a month – and although a few people will be happy we will be gone, I am hoping a lot feel it is a loss and a shame.”

Landlord Mr Saunders and the neighbouring traders declined to comment.

* Did your children use the nursery? Is the noise a problem? What do you think? Send your views to us. E-mail us at [email protected].