Herefordshire country pub ‘need not be pulled down’

A Herefordshire country pub should not be demolished as it is can still be run as a business, it has been claimed.

A planning application to knock down the Tram Inn, Allensmore, and to build commercial units and a community gospel hall on the site was put forward by the Hereford Gospel Hall Trust in November.

But John Williams, executive chairman of local property services firm Sidney Phillips, has put in an objection to the proposal, saying: “We have an established well-funded local client who is more than willing to purchase the property and continue its use as a public house.”

National planning guidance discourages loss of pubs where there is evidence they can be kept in use, he points out.

“This is most certainly the case in this instance and, if required, we can produce evidence that our client wished to acquire it and for it to continue as a public house,” his letter adds.

But Kilpeck parish council said its November meeting drew no objections from councillors to the trust’s proposal.

Herefordshire Council had set a target of deciding on the application by Christmas, a month ago.