To Re-Open The Oddfellows, Higham on the Hill
Donation protected
The people of Higham on the Hill have decided to take matters into their own hands in the quest to re-open their beloved village pub, The Oddfellows. Our vision is for ‘The Oddies' to be a pub at the heart of the community. The aim is to acquire the pub for the community and reopen with a focus on developing a thriving village amenity that serves all. We envisage a bar, restaurant, meeting space, gardens and outside space. The ideas shared by the people of the village are at the heart of the plans to create a community hub that’s more than a pub.
After it closed in the summer of 2018 the building has fallen into a state of disrepair and with no alternative venue in the village the local community is searching for a new centre. Having been purchased by local housing developers, their first planning application was defeated with over 100 objections. 100!
The developer has returned with a hybrid application for planning permission to turn the pub building into a dwelling with further development of up to 20 houses. With sufficient village objections, permission will be hard to get. As before, the change of use of the site has to be assessed on the basis of the harm or benefit to the community. The impact on the community and the village heritage would be significant. Now more than ever, rural communities like ours need spaces for people to congregate – at least we will do, one day soon!
With the second planning application in, we are at a crucial point in our campaign so if you can contribute to the GoFundMe page to help us do the best job possible then please do so.
Anything you can give would be hugely appreciated - maybe we'll see you in person one day and buy you a drink to say 'thank-you'! Higham on the Hill is a very close community and The Oddfellows has been at its heart for 200 years. It was a place for a varied number of groups to meet as well as simply give some of its residents the rare chance to socialise. Villages like ours rely on this kind of establishment and we will do everything we can to get it back up and running!
To find out more please visit https://savetheoddiespub.wixsite.com/stop
After it closed in the summer of 2018 the building has fallen into a state of disrepair and with no alternative venue in the village the local community is searching for a new centre. Having been purchased by local housing developers, their first planning application was defeated with over 100 objections. 100!
The developer has returned with a hybrid application for planning permission to turn the pub building into a dwelling with further development of up to 20 houses. With sufficient village objections, permission will be hard to get. As before, the change of use of the site has to be assessed on the basis of the harm or benefit to the community. The impact on the community and the village heritage would be significant. Now more than ever, rural communities like ours need spaces for people to congregate – at least we will do, one day soon!
With the second planning application in, we are at a crucial point in our campaign so if you can contribute to the GoFundMe page to help us do the best job possible then please do so.
Anything you can give would be hugely appreciated - maybe we'll see you in person one day and buy you a drink to say 'thank-you'! Higham on the Hill is a very close community and The Oddfellows has been at its heart for 200 years. It was a place for a varied number of groups to meet as well as simply give some of its residents the rare chance to socialise. Villages like ours rely on this kind of establishment and we will do everything we can to get it back up and running!
To find out more please visit https://savetheoddiespub.wixsite.com/stop
Fundraising team (6)
Adrian Baker
Organizer
Aaron Blackwell
Team member
Kate Phillips
Team member
Linda Markey
Team member
Rob Parker
Team member
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