A city mosque is set for a revamp despite warnings that plans could cause "irreparable damage" to a historic building. 

Norwich City Council has given Ihsan Mosque and Islamic Centre, in Chapelfield East, the green light to extend the site from the back of the building.

The plans will see the current outbuilding demolished and new toilets built after they were deemed "barely adequate and uncomfortable to use, especially in the winter" by the mosque.

The Ihsan Islamic Centre overlooks Chapelfield GardensThe Ihsan Islamic Centre overlooks Chapelfield Gardens (Image: Denise Bradley)

The existing conservatory will be replaced with a side extension for the kitchen, which will add nearly 10m to the back of the current building and will feature bi-fold doors.

This will feature dark grey aluminium cladding for the walls which will contrast with the red brick of the historic centre.

The mosque faces Chapelfield Gardens and is a former Victorian boy's school and a locally listed building.

The plans will see the old outbuilding demolished and a new two storey extension builtThe plans will see the old outbuilding demolished and a new two storey extension built (Image: ATELIER YUSUF ADAMS via Norwich City Council)

Norwich City Council's urban conservation and design team raised concerns about the plans, fearing that the designs would "obscure architectural features of the Victorian locally listed building".

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"Proposals to demolish the outbuilding do not outweigh the loss in terms of historic significance as a contemporaneous Victorian structure within the boundary of the locally listed St Peter's Boys' School situated in the City Centre Conservation Area," said the council officer.

The proposed view of the extension from Chantry RoadThe proposed view of the extension from Chantry Road (Image: ATELIER YUSUF ADAMS via Norwich City Council)

"The original planform of the buildings would be irreparably damaged by the proposal to expand upwards and outwards across the limited space available on site."

However, city council planners decided that the benefits of the extension would outweigh the loss and granted permission for the work.

Now that permission has been granted, the mosque has three years to start the work.