A campaign group has spoken of its delight after plans to convert a 500-year-old village pub into housing were thrown out.
Sarah Peterson, head of the Save Our Swan (SOS) group is celebrating after a hard-fought campaign saw proposals to turn The Swan, in Ley Hill, into one house with parking refused by councillors at a planning meeting this week.
The Grade-II listed pub, which is believed to be one of the oldest in Bucks, has been under threat from development since 2018, with two previous planning applications – one for a nursery and another for two houses – also refused.
Ms Peterson, who spoke passionately at the virtual meeting on Tuesday night, pleading with councillors to throw out the plans, said: “We are really pleased. It’s a step in the right direction.
“The support for the pub in the meeting was absolutely amazing.”
READ MORE: Campaigners celebrate after plans to turn 500-year-old pub into housing thrown out
Ms Peterson told the Bucks Free Press the group has had more than 140 residents pledging over £250,000 in total to save the pub.
She is now planning to apply for the government’s £250,000 grant in the hope of making a “fair and reasonable” offer to buy its freehold from the current owners and keep it as a pub.
Praising the community for its backing, she said: “It’s the support from the community that has kept us going. It’s been tough at times but because we’ve got this support, it’s made it all worth it.
READ MORE: Campaigners fighting to save village pub gear up for latest battle amid plans to turn it into house
“We have a strong team too. The only reason we are doing this is because out of the 450-odd households we have here, in a survey we did in 2018, more than 315 people said they wanted to keep it as a pub.”
She added: “We’ve got such a lot of momentum behind this.”
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