A HOSPICE has applied for outline planning permission for a scaled-down extension.

Trustees at Treetops hospice, Risley, have scaled down their original £2m plans for the annex because of the recession.

The smaller £1m building, which will house a day-care centre, will still mean the hospice can take on 500 more day-care patients a year.

Treetops, which started in 1984, offers respite care to people suffering from life-limiting illnesses such as cancer and multiple sclerosis. About 800 people attend annually.

Erewash Borough Council will rule on the plans at a date to be decided.