Holiday cabins for The Anchor pub in Burwell scrapped

East Cambridgeshire District Council received a planning application submitted by the team behind The Anchor, in Burwell.

The venue sought permission to build three cabins in the land behind the pub to use as six short term holiday lets. 

The application also proposed a storage shed, associated landscaping and parking arrangements.

The Anchor is a Grade II-listed building on North Street, in Burwell, and the land behind it was once the pub's beer garden.

However, the site now sits vacant and overgrown after it was sold off for development. 

The holiday stays were "intended to enhance the commercial viability of the business through expanded hospitality services," the plans said. 

The proposals added the design would have ensured "the special architectural land historic interest of the heritage asset (the pub) is preserved".

A heritage statement submitted as part of the application described the cabins as "lightweight, timber-framed structures" with a low roofing, to ensure they were in keeping with the wider surroundings.

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Burwell is known to have "significant medieval and post-medieval activity", however, any risk to archaeological remains on the land earmarked for development remain low, the statement added. 

The site has been labelled as that of "low intrinsic heritage value" in the current condition it is in, but the applicant felt it had the potential to enhance the listed building through a "sensitive redevelopment".

The plans drew objections from a number of locals who expressed concerns around noise disturbance from cars, privacy and the effects of increased parking. 

One resident said the site already experiences "a problem with parking both in the car park outside our house, and neighbouring houses," which resulted in "virtually impossible access" in and out of driveways.

They added: "There is bound to be more noise disturbance with cars accessing the holiday lets at all times of day and night.

"We regularly get noise disturbance from the pub, loud music sometimes going on way beyond licensing hours and people shouting late at night – and there are no signs up from the pub asking for consideration for the residents living here."

Another neighbour said they were not opposed to the proposal as long as the height of the units did not exceed four metres and the design of the holiday lets were in "keeping with local surroundings." 

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