Pub plan for historic butchers shop in north Derbyshire

An application for change of use of a listed building at 5a High Street, Dronfield has been submitted to North East Derbyshire District Council.

The premises were formerly run by Fisher & Sons, a family business that had supplied meat for more than 100 years. The butcher’s business was founded 300 years ago during the reign of Queen Anne.

Under the current plan, the building would sell alcoholic beverages and food every day of the week from 11am until 12am. The application, which has been submitted by an agent acting on behalf of Jo and Will Mycroft, also seeks permission to change the shop front and add one window to the gable end.

Dronfield Civic Society has expressed objections to the plan due to insufficient detail being provided to judge the impacts on the building and local environment. A letter from the society’s chairman states: “We are supportive of changes to avoid buildings being empty and becoming derelict. However we've already seen in Dronfield examples of bad decisions, damaging the integrity of conservation areas. In this case, there are no details given of the finishes of the modified building, window treatments, lighting, any advertising signage, etc. As a commercial business we appreciate that it needs to be visible and promoted however that needs to be done with care and sensitivity of design such that it enhances the local streetscene. Once more details are provided we may withdraw our objection.”

The district council’s decision on the plan is pending.