Developers have been refused permission to turn a former Worthing nightclub and shopping parade into a five-storey block of 19 flats.

Borough councillors decided the plans for the Carioca Club and Plaza Parade on Rowlands Road would mean the loss of retail space and the buildings would not fit it with surrounding buildings.

At the same meeting, they approved a new fitness suite for the Guildbourne Centre.

It is expected to cater for up to 100 people at peak times and would include gyms, a beauty therapy centre and aerobics classes.

The new Wilkinson home and garden store at the Guildbourne Centre will open on March 9.