Yorkshire village pub which closed after 150 years to be demolished for housing - but frontage to remain

The Rose and Crown Inn at Golcar had been trading for 150 years but fell on hard times during the pandemic and was unable to recover, standing vacant for the past three years. As a result, the previous owner sold the premises and the buyer applied to transform the site into a small residential development.

Today (13 April) an outline planning application was decided by Kirklees Council’s Planning Sub-Committee for Huddersfield. Being an outline application, further details on the design of the properties will come at a later date.

Previously, the plans were for 14 homes, but this number was halved to seven due to “significant concerns” from the council around the proposed layout. Due to the reduction in number, the development isn’t regarded to be major so no financial contribution is required from the developer.

Officers recommended approval of the application even though it attracted a significant number of objections. Despite this, the panel opted to unanimously approve the amended application.

The site sits within the Golcar conservation area and is located near a listed building. Whilst officers acknowledged damage would be caused to the visual appeal of the surrounding area, they felt the benefits of increased housing provision outweighs the negatives.

To make way for the homes, the pub will be demolished though its frontage will be maintained. Two properties will take the space of the old pub and the remainder of the development built on the space behind it.

Golcar ward councillor Andrew Marchington spoke at the meeting as a ward councillor rather than a member of the committee and didn’t vote on the application due to the potential conflict of interests. He spoke favourably of the application and explained that the level of traffic generated by the development was likely to be less than that generated by the pub when it was operating.

Later in the meeting, Highways officers confirmed that Cllr Marchington was correct and that vehicular movements from the development were anticipated to be three or four each morning and night compared to the 10 to 20 hourly movements generated by a pub. An officer explained that the plans were seen to be an overall improvement in highway safety.

Emma Hanks from Yorkshire-based L’Arche Developments – the company that will be delivering the project on behalf of the applicant – said that the entrance to the development would be moved further northwest to improve visibility as this was currently an issue.

She added: “With careful and sensitive design we would like to see a sympathetic and in-keeping design approach to be adopted for the final scheme using local materials and perhaps the re-use of the stone from the original pub together with architectural details picked up common to the area.”

Applicant Mr Carl Pogson wanted to explain to the panel that the plans were making “progress” for the vacant pub. He said: “Leaving it as it is, it’s only going to go downhill and get worse. It’s a pub, and as we all know the pub business is failing right, left, and centre.”

Cllr Tyler Hawkins (Labour, Dalton) said: “I understand the issues around access but I feel certainly common sense driving on there should mitigate any issues that you are going to have there. I appreciate they’ve moved the access as well.

He added: “As long as road users appreciate it’s Church Street and not Silverstone, I think they’ll be absolutely fine there…I think this is exactly the kind of site that we need to see developed and I would like to move the officer’s recommendation.”

Cllr Tony McGrath (Con, Holme Valley North) said: “It’s always a sad day to lose a long-standing establishment like the Rose and Crown and I feel it should be mentioned. You know it’s sad and we never want to see local assets like that disappear but obviously, it’s been said that as a business it’s not viable, and as mentioned by the applicant that if it’s not working and no one can make it run it shouldn’t sit there forever as a relic to not serve alcohol to people.”