RESIDENTS in a North Cornwall village have lodged objections to the proposed building of houses at the rear of one of their historic pubs.

A planning application for the construction of eight three-bedroom houses on land to the rear of the Bettle and Chisel public house on High Street in Delabole has been submitted.

Plans for the eight dwellings were submitted to Cornwall Council by its owner Red Oak Taverns, who acquired the venue along with eight other Cornish pubs from brewery giant St Austell Brewery in 2023.

The land which would be redeveloped was granted planning permission for use as a camping area in 2012.

Twelve objections from residents have so far been lodged with Cornwall Council, with Delabole Parish Council also joining the objectors.

In their consultation response, the council said: “Delabole Parish Council objects to the application on the following grounds.

“Access- there is poor access to and from the site from the main road through the village. This is a busy road and visibility from the access is poor. It comes straight out onto a pedestrian crossing.

“We understand there would need to be a footpath alongside the access road. The allowed access is a minimum of 3.73 metres wide, this access is only 2.89 metres wide. The narrow access would also restrict emergency vehicles accessing the properties. There would be numerous construction vehicles accessing the lane during the construction phase, and it is just too narrow.

“Parking - we note the addition of the flats but there is no allocated parking for those units. If the pub has customer cars in the car park, there will not be enough room for all the vehicles.

“It was noted that quite a lot of the land in question sits within the circle of sewage problems (phosphates and nutrient neutrality). Until this is sorted out by South West Water, a development like this should not be approved.

“It was felt that the properties were acceptable, but the location is completely wrong.”

In an accompanying design and access statement, the planning agents for the plans for the Bettle and Chisel said: “Whilst the proposal does not result in a loss of the public house trading floorspace, it does seek to slightly extend the beer garden and reconfigure the unmarked and rough surfaced car park into two demarcated formal car parks with no loss in the amount of parking available.

“The proposed dwellings will be located on the plot used as a campsite and motorhome parking. Currently, the site is comprised of a selection of green and hardstanding areas, occupied by a number of caravans.

“The land is at present underutilised as a result of continuous low public interest, thus becoming a financial drain on the Bettle and Chisel. The capital gained from the sale of the development will be reinvested into the business in an effort to boost its financial viability.”

Red Oak Taverns have been approached for comment on their plans.