A company which has spent £250,000 converting a pub into a nursery may be forced to close before the first child toddles through the door.

The former Bluebell pub on Leeds Road's junction with Carr Lane in Windhill, Shipley, has been renovated and kitted out with play equipment for up to 66 children aged up to five.

Bonbons Day Nursery is all set to open for business, but planning permission for change of use has yet to be granted.

And Bradford Council's planning officers are to recommend that the application is refused at a meeting of the Shipley Area Planning Panel on Thursday.

Gary Channon, chairman of Bonbons, said the company went ahead with the work thinking the application would be approved.

"It was a mistake to have under-estimated how serious the highway issue was going to be, that's all I can say." he said. The report highlights three major concerns over traffic at the already busy junction.

Cars slowing and turning into the nursery's car park would slow traffic on Leeds Road

A lack of parking spaces could lead to on-street car parking, causing congestion

A lack of safe crossing points for people walking to the nursery

Mr Channon hopes the planning panel will weigh the benefits of extra child care places against the traffic problems.

"Shipley has been shown by government figures to need more child care places," he said.

"Our research was based on that and the size of the building. We thought there may be traffic issues but we also identified various ways we could address them.

"We never thought this could be a deal stopper."

Councillor Tony Miller (Lab, Shipley East) said extra child places should not be created at the expense of road safety.

"I'm just hoping that at the llth hour someone can come up with something, but it looks very bleak," he said.

"I don't want to sound negative but we have to be realistic. It is a problem area and people won't forgive us if an accident happens there."

Mr Channon says he will appeal if the application is refused, but realises the business could be forced to close.

"We don't have a plan B," he said.

"We have sunk £250,000 into the project. If it doesn't come off that will look like a poor business decision."