Planners applauded as Great Bourton pub conversion plans refused
A decision to refuse permission for a disused pub to be converted into homes has been applauded at a council meeting.The former Bell Inn in Great Bourton, Oxfordshire, was previously owned by the Hook Norton Brewery, but it sold it to its current owner in May 2024.The brewery said the building had no commercial future as a pub and its current owner stripped it of its pub fixtures, but 239 people opposed changing its use.Cherwell District Council's planning committee was applauded by members of the public after it unanimously dismissed the change of use application for the site, near Banbury.
Chris Brant, district councillor for Cropredy, Sibfords and Wroxton, said the pub had been the "beating heart" of Great Bourton.He said the community was "denied a fair opportunity to act" against its sale and that the planning application had caused "deep concern" and "united residents" against it.An action group to save the pub was set up, which told the council that it believes the building, in Manor Road, is potentially financially viable as a pub again.The Save The Bell Inn Group told Cherwell Council on Thursday that it believes it could "thrive as a profitable concern if allowed to continue as a public house".
You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
More than 130 years later, this pragmatic trust still offers something new
Questor is The Telegraph's stockpicking column, helping you decode the markets and offering insights on where to invest for the past six decades. The UK equity market has been a happy hunting ground for income-seeking investors, and it continues to offer a yield premium to other developed equity markets. However, more recent events, particularly across competing income-producing asset classes, have shifted the emphasis for equity income investors towards total returns, dividend growth and the benefits of a pragmatic approach to stock selection. In the context of an evolving landscape of UK equity income strategies, few names stand out as consistently as Law Debenture. This venerable institution, with almost 136 years of history, combines an actively managed UK equity investment portfolio with the robust growth of its wholly-owned independent professional services (IPS) business, which is comprised of three divisions – pensions, corporate trust and corporate services. This combination creates a unique structure that supports the trust's history of consistent outperformance. The investment portfolio is managed by the experienced Janus Henderson duo of James Henderson and Laura Foll, and benefits from a contrarian and value-focused style. The investment approach followed by Henderson and Foll is unconstrained by the equity income mandate, can invest across the market cap spectrum and targets companies trading at reasonable valuations with conservative balance sheets and experienced management teams. One of the standout features of Law Debenture is the IPS business, which accounts for around 19pc of its net asset value (Nav) and has funded approximately 30pc of its dividends over the past decade. IPS has delivered mid-to-high single-digit growth and around two thirds of IPS revenues are recurring.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Imperial Oil reports small diesel leak into river in Ontario
June 11 (Reuters) - Imperial Oil ( opens new tab on Wednesday reported a small diesel leak into the Saint Clair river from its dock in Ontario, Canada, according to a latest community alert. "Containment booms have been deployed in the St. Clair River... The leak source was quickly isolated, and confirmed stopped at 10:00 p.m.," Imperial said. Imperial was not immediately available to comment on the volume of the release. Recovery and clean-up efforts are ongoing, and the sheen is fully contained, Imperial said, adding precautionary down river water quality monitoring has been conducted, and no detectable levels of hydrocarbon have been observed.
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
The Original Factory Shop launches closing down sale at yet another store – see full list of locations closing in June
THE Original Factory Shop has launched a closing down sale at yet another store. A branch in Heswall is the latest store to announce its closure, leaving shoppers heartbroken. 1 The Merseyside branch has launched closing down sale to help shift stock before it shutters for good. Shoppers have a chance to grab up to 70% off selected lines, and 50% off electrical products. The Henswell store opened two years ago in June 2023. The exact date the store is closing has not yet been confirmed but The Sun will update this piece when we hear more. Up to 11 TOFS stores are already to set to close this month, including sites across Worcestershire, Durham and Cumbria . Meanwhile, another five stores across Nairn, Market Drayton, Troon, Blairgowrie and Castle Douglas have been placed up for sale. The Original Factory Shop has told The Sun that negotiations are ongoing with landlords - making it unclear whether these shops will remain open. It comes as part of a major restructuring carried out by new owner Modella Capital with a number of loss making stores having to close as result. Over June nine of these stores will close, including sites in Dorest and Durham. Another site in Middlewich is also set to close however a date is yet to be confirmed. Popular retailer to RETURN 13 years after collapsing into administration and shutting 236 stores You can see the full list of store closures here: Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire - June 26 Perth - June 28 Chester Le Street, County Durham - June 28 Arbroath, Angus - June 28 Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire - June 28 Pershore, Worcestershire - June 28 Normanton, West Yorkshire - June 28 Peterhead, Aberdeenshire - June 28 Shaftesbury, Dorset - June 28 Staveley, Cumbria - July 12 Middlewich - TBC Heswall - TBC The following stores are also up for sale: Nairn Market Drayton Troon Blairgowrie Castle Douglas What's been happening with The Original Factory Shop? Private equity firm Modella bought The Original Factory Shop back in February and has since launched a restructuring effort to renegotiate rents at 88 TOFS stores. Modella is known for picking up struggling retailers, having also recently acquired Hobbycraft and WHSmith 's high street shops. It is set to rebrand all WHSmith high street stores to TGJones, and has brought in advisers to look at potential options for Hobbycraft. At the end of April, Modella drew up plans to initiate a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) for TOFS. Companies often use CVAs to prevent insolvency, which could otherwise result in store closures or the collapse of the entire business. They allow firms to explore different strategies such as negotiating reduced rent rates with landlords. TOFS previously told The Press and Journal that a "number of loss-making stores will have to close" as part of the restructuring. It said at the time: "Closing stores is always a tough decision and we are committed to keeping as many stores open as possible. And it is not only TOFS that is facing hard times. Hobbycraft is set to close nine stores come June 21. RETAIL PAIN IN 2025 The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. Research by the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April. A survey of more than 4,800 firms found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024. Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." Professor Bamfield has also warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
