Community hub plan for Bratton Fleming but it's not in the pub

Village wants to save the White Hart but owner has different ideas

A planning application has been submitted for a new community hub in Bratton Fleming, despite the community’s desire to see its village pub used for this purpose.

Businessman Philip Milton wants to replace the temporary village shop at Millennium Green car park with a new pub, shop, post office and four units of living accommodation above.

But the scheme is opposed by the parish council and Bratton Fleming Community Benefit Society (BFCBS) who want to provide a community hub in the existing pub.

The White Hart is owned by Mr Milton who bought it after it closed in 2012. He has tried and failed on several occasions to get planning consent for housing on the site, either through conversion or newly built homes.

The loss of a community facility was the main reason for refusal by planning officers and inspectors at subsequent appeals.

Last year the parish council and the BFCBS  secured planning permission for partial change of use of pub into a community hub after 99 per cent of people supported the idea in a village survey.

BFCBS has made approaches to the pub owner to buy the property, hoping to fund it through grants and private contributions.

But in his planning statement, Mr Milton, a financial advisor, said the necessary modernisation of the accessible space and the “truly exorbitant costs” of making the redundant White Hart fit for multi-purpose community use was “not justifiable”.

He said a brand new purpose built 1,050 sq metre community hub on one level, with a car park, was far more economically viable and in a safer location away from the main road.

The White Hart’s car park had "inadequate manoeuvring space" and was "dangerous to access" when considering the school, village hall and church nearby, he said.

He added that the proposal has been arranged around the comments made on previous planning applications and public surveys by residents.

“It is apparent that a public house, shop, post office and other resources are the amenities the village wants to thrive,” he said.

Mr Milton has suggested the new community hub could be run by the parish council, who own part of the Millennium Green site.

Bratton Fleming opposed the new application at its meeting this week saying it was “bemused” by it.

Members reiterated that they wanted to see the White Hart brought back into use and said Mr Milton's plan would prejudice a future housing development earmarked in the local plan for the proposed site.

They added that a pub at the Millennium Green car park would disturb existing neighbouring properties.

North Devon Council will make a decision on the application at a future date. People have until Saturday 6 April to comment.