The LICENSING bosses have given a Herefordshire pub permission to extend alcohol sales hours.
Paul English, landlord of King’s Head in Docklow, also asked permission to play live and recorded music indoors from 11am to midnight Sunday through Thursday and until 1am Friday through Saturday.
He also requested the Herefordshire Council to serve refreshments indoors late into the night from Sunday to Thursday from 11pm to midnight and on Fridays and Saturdays from 11pm to 1am.
Nick Semper, on behalf of the applicant, called on the committee to grant the license and let the pub thrive.
He said, “The King’s Head in Docklow has been a pub for literally hundreds of years.
“It’s an archetypal village pub. However, over the past decade it has fallen victim to the same disease that has wreaked havoc on countless others across the county.
“Since the smoking ban, the UK has lost 11,000 pubs and Covid has called for another 8,000.
“There has been a concerted effort to turn this pub into an apartment. The local community rallied and gathered around the real ale campaign. It was saved but left empty for several years with no immediate hope of salvation.
“A few months ago, Mr. Paul English discovered this abandoned pub and set out to restore this lost gem in North Herefordshire.”
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Mark Haslam, of the Herefordshire division of the Real Ale Campaign, also called on the committee to approve the program.
“One only has to read some of the letters from the locals to understand the importance of the king’s head to the local community,” he said.
“Docklow is a very small community that has no other facilities, not even City Hall.
“Historically, all events such as private parties, community meetings, guards, and wedding receptions were regularly hosted by the pub.”
Alan Seldon, chairman of the licensing subcommittee, said he had decided to grant the submitted operating license.
“I wish Mr. English the best of luck in his new company.”
The pub has also been given permission to extend opening hours to 1 a.m. on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, and the Sunday before public holidays.