Award-winning Derbyshire country pub no longer has a 'viable future' after pandemic

Landlords of the Shoulder of Mutton, at Hallfieldgate, near Alfreton, have applied for planning permission to convert the pub into a residential property so they can continue to live there.

The couple, Mr and Mrs R J Morris, who have owned the pub since 1987 and have a ‘very strong connection’ with the building, have asked North East Derbyshire District Council for permission to convert it into a single detached dwelling.

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Documents on the council’s website say: “The Shoulder of Mutton has traditionally been reliant on its ‘wet trade’ and has been unable, due to its layout, limited floor area and the inability to provide a commercial kitchen, to provide dining facilities.

"The public house has been closed since the commencement of the lockdown in March 2020 and there is considered to be very little chance of it being able to reopen for the foreseeable future in a manner that satisfies requirements in respect of social distancing.”

Although the pub has an outside beer garden, this is described as ‘relatively remote’ from the main area of the pub.

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"It appears unlikely, at least for the foreseeable future, that social distancing requirements arising from Covid-19 will be eased,” the application adds.

"The reduced opening hours, the particular layout of the public areas at the Shoulder of Mutton, their low ceiling heights and the restricted circulation space between seating renders it impossible to generate a customer throughput that will justify re-opening.”

Despite receiving CAMRA recognition for the quality and range of beers on offer, ‘no meaningful surplus has been generated to provide a worthwhile living’ at the pub over recent years.

Documents also say the couple have ‘compelling reasons’ to close the pub on health grounds.

"Accordingly, the owners do not consider that the public house, like many others at the present time, has a viable future,” the report says.

"They have, therefore, no plans to re-open.”

Mr and Mrs Morris say that although they regret the loss of this community facility, of which they have ‘always been proud’, they ‘do not wish to leave their long-established place of residence’.

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