Empty listed pub conversion plan rejected

The Bridge House, in Paley Street, has been empty since early 2023

A plan to use a Grade II listed pub that has been empty for more than two-and-a-half years as a house has been dismissed.

The Bridge House, in Paley Street, near Maidenhead, shut in January 2023 but the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (RBWM) said the applicants failed to show there was no demand for the pub.

Part of the building dates back to the 16th Century but it was substantially extended in the 20th Century. It was first listed in 1986.

The proposal to use the pub and an adjoining barn for a four-bedroom house was rejected by RBWM last week, which also rejected giving its owners listed building consent.

Planning agents said five offers were submitted for the site between January 2023 and summer 2024 but no one wanted to use it as a pub.

A report by real estate company Savills found the pub could not be run as a viable business "in the short, medium or longer term".

RBWM said there were other issues with the application, including that it failed to show the effects the house would have ecologically and on biodiversity.