A religious community in south west Wales has lost its appeal for planning permission to create a hospice to nurse terminally ill patients.

The monks of Skanda Vale, near Llanpumsaint, had taken their appeal to the Welsh Assembly, after being denied planning consent by Carmarthenshire county council.

The planning inspectorate's approach as well as that of Carmarthenshire county council represents bureaucracy at its very worst

Brother Michael, Skanda Vale

The assembly ruled the work would be harmful to the character of the proposed site, which is on a nearby disused farm.

The monks, part of a multi-faith group called the Many Names of God, are now considering the possibility of buying an existing nursing or residential home.

The group has its roots in Sri Lanka and the hospice would have offered free palliative care and been built and run entirely by volunteers.

Brother Michael said: "The planning inspectorate's approach as well as that of Carmarthenshire county council represents bureaucracy at its very worst. "

The community's elephant, Valli.

The assembly inspector's ruling against the monks of Skanda Vale said one of the reasons they had been denied planning permission was 'there would be no significant benefit to the rural economy'.

This is because the hospice would be run entirely by volunteers.

The overall conclusion acknowledged a lack of hospice and day care facilities in the Carmarthen area, and the need for facilities to provide an appropriate level of care for the terminally ill.

But the report said that was not a sufficient reason to justify any new build on the disused farm site.