At their meeting on 18th August Rushmoor Council refused planning permission to convert the pub into flats. Overall there were 52 public comments on the application and all 52 were objections.

The key policy reason for the refusal was that the “application has not been supported by sufficient evidence to demonstrate that there is no-longer term need for the public house. In this regard, the proposal conflicts with… [Rushmoor’s planning policies]… and would thereby give rise to the loss of a community facility.”

This is a great result but we can expect the owners to react in some way, either via an appeal or amended application. However, the work done on this by the local community to date has been excellent. The Community Group looking to buy the pub remains active and is still working hard to secure the long term future of the White Lion as a pub.