Plan restores the historic pub and adds housing after previous hotel plans fell through.
The company submitted a fresh plan in late November 2024. It includes restoring the pub, re-using it, and constructing new homes nearby. Extra papers were sent through January and February specifying plans to restore the old pub and build two new buildings, three and four stories tall, with apartments, regular homes, landscaping, and amenity areas.
The update aims to restore the pub’s heritage with refurbished historical details and proposes homes instead of the earlier planned hotel to house mainly residents. The Old Spotted Dog is a Grade II listed site dating back to the 15th century and is said to have been used by Henry VIII as a hunting lodge.
It has been closed since 2004 and has been empty a long time. Squatters and vandals damaged the pub badly, and someone stole metal from the roof, worsening the damage. The plan will remove poor 20th-century parts, exposing the Tudor and Victorian parts of the pub, according to the planning document.
The builders will remove 1960s and 1980s additions to restore the building’s historical importance. Demolition will make space for new features, including a bar, dining room, lounge, function rooms, and a roof terrace. The two new buildings will have 22 new homes.
Ian Hopwood is managing the application for Synthesis Architecture. The local paper could not reach the company or the architect firm involved for comment.