CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save a village’s only pub have been given hope by a council decision.

The Seven Tuns pub in Chedworth has been closed for a year and there are fears it could be snapped up by a developer and turned into homes.

However a similar situation in Northleach, where a developer was denied permission to turn a pub into a house, has given the Friends of the Seven Tuns (FOST) group new hope. Plans to convert the historic Red Lion in Northleach pub into a home was voted down by Cotswold District Council’s planning committee last month.

Although applicants Kevin and Carol Stokes said the pub was not profitable, the committee said they could not support plans which would spell the loss of a historic pub which provides a place for social activities and employment. David Broad, who is on the planning committee and is a member of Chedworth Parish Council, said the decision could set a precedent for the Seven Tuns.

Although it is the only pub in Chedworth, the Seven Tuns has not had a permanent tenant since Young’s Brewery left in early 2013.

After a string of temporary landlords, the doors were shut in January last year.

Criterion Asset Management, the administrator, has been trying to find a new landlord for the Queen Street pub since then but without success.

The building has been listed as a community asset – which means that if it is put on the market the community has six months to form a bid to buy the site.

Cllr Broad, who is part of FOST, said the decision on the Red Lion sends out a strong message that pubs in the Cotswolds threatened with closure will not disappear easily.

He said: “I hope it will send out a signal to other pub owners that we will object to a change of use of a pub.”

Cllr Broad said there may be more good news for the Seven Tuns as members of the FOST will meet district council chief executive David Neudegg this month to discuss a proposal that the authority buys the pub and helps find a new lease holder.

For all the latest news from Chedworth and Northleach, see wiltsglosstandard.co.uk