Village delighted as pub plan is halted (From Tewkesbury Admag)

Village delighted as pub plan is halted

FASHION tycoon George Davies has called time on plans to convert a village pub into a private house due to an "unpleasant" response from villagers.

Millionaire designer George's wife, Fiona, had applied to Cotswold District Council for permission to change the use of the Horse and Groom in Bourton-on-the-Hill.

The application provoked a storm of protest from villagers, who vowed to fight the scheme, which they said would deprive their community of a much-needed facility.

About 50 residents wrote letters of objection to planners and the parish council also expressed its concerns about the scheme.

The plan was due to be discussed at a meeting of the district council's planning committee yesterday but was taken off the agenda after the council received a letter from Mr Davies withdrawing the application.

He wrote: "The adverse publicity has been very unpleasant. In the short to medium term Mrs Fiona Davies is prepared to maintain the village pub to give the villagers an opportunity to use this facility, which they have been so vociferous about."

Patricia Hayes, chairman of the parish council, said she was delighted that the application had been withdrawn and that the mood in the village was one of elation.

She added: "We hope that the present owners will either get some management in and start it up as a pub again or sell it as a going concern. It's very important to have a public house in a village like this.

"The objections were very strong and the council's planning department had recommended refusal."

District councillor Rod Hooper, who is on the planning committee, said residents must have a fair opportunity to show their support for the pub. "I feel that they should open every day and produce food like the previous owners, when it was a good going concern and an asset to the community."

Mr Davies, who made his fortune by founding the Next fashion chain, the Per Una brand and Asda's George range, was estimated by the Sunday Times last weekend to possess a fortune of £115million. He was named in the paper's Rich List 2005 as the joint 410th wealthiest person in Britain.