LOCAL campaigners are celebrating the refusal of a proposal to knock down a beloved village pub and turn it into a largescale block of flats.

The last remaining pub in Loudwater, The Derehams Inn on Derehams Lane, was sold in 2021 by former owner Graham Sturgess, who had run the establishment with his wife Maggie since 1998.

In January, Derco Properties Ltd revealed plans to knock down the building and develop seven flats in its place, prompting a wave of backlash from residents who had viewed the pub as a vital community asset.

However, following considerable assessments and an impassioned campaign that has amassed nearly 1,000 signatures, the application has now been refused by Buckinghamshire Council, with the planning authority citing the building's status as a listed Asset of Community Value as a central factor in its decision.

Leading campaigner Mick Parsons, who previously expressed "disgust" at the development plans, said the refusal of the application had "100 per cent" been a community effort.

He added: "The journey is by no means over. We now need to understand what the current owner is going to do with it and consider the possibility of purchasing it as a community-run establishment.

"It's essentially a pipe dream at the moment because we have to look into how we would go about buying it as a community, but the refusal of the application is at least a dim light at the end of the tunnel."

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Mick added that the backlash to the proposed development from Loudwater residents was centrally due to its status as the last pub left in the village.

"Right up to when it closed, it was a fully functioning pub. It wasn't making as much money during Covid as it had before, but it was still an important part of the community.

"We're glad that this importance has been recognised by the planning authority. We're at the first steps of a journey now and we'll just have to see where it goes."

Buckinghamshire Council also cited the proposed development's "incongruous" design, "poor standard of accommodation", insufficient flood prevention measures and failure to demonstrate a biodiversity net gain among the reasons for refusing the proposal.

Local officials have also voiced their dissent to the plans, with Councillor Nathan Thomas describing it as an "overdevelopment" that was "not in character with the street" and would detrimentally impact "one of the few community facilities the residents of Loudwater have left". 

Steve Baker, MP for High Wycombe, also drew attention to the assurance made by the current owner of the pub during sales negotiations that the site would continue to be run as a free house. 

He added that other licensed premises in the area including The Happy Union had also closed over the last few years, a shift that was having an "adverse impact" both on residents and local businesses.