A PUBLIC meeting is to be held in Sandford as part of a campaign to keep the village’s 16th-century Lamb Inn from being turned into houses.

It will take place at 2pm on Saturday, February 22 at Sandford Parish Hall.

Landlord Nick Silk is currently seeking permission to turn the Grade II-listed pub into three three-bedroom homes.

He wants to retire, the Lamb Inn has “not been a viable business” since the Covid-19 pandemic despite efforts to diversify income, and nobody made an offer to buy the pub over two and a half years, planning documents say.

The Lamb Inn was last bought for £500,000 in 2017 and was put up for sale in July 2022 for £795,000, with the price then dropping to £775,000 and later £675,000.

As many as 80 people have written to Mid Devon District Council objecting to the plans at the time of writing.

They highlight the history of the pub, its value to the local community, and question whether it is an economically unviable business.

Topics at the upcoming public meeting will include what the campaign group is doing, its next steps and how people can get involved.

The campaign’s eventual aim is to bring the pub into community ownership, as has been done with other Devon pubs including the Drewe Arms in Drewsteignton, the Cadeleigh Arms and the Sir Walter Raleigh in East Budleigh.

If the council grants Mr Silk planning permission, the main pub building, the Lamb Barn next to it and the Dowrich Room at the rear would be turned into homes. There would be no car parking available.

You can see the application on the Mid Devon District Council website under reference 25/00040/FULL.

To see more public notices and planning applications, visit: publicnoticeportal.uk.