Planning application submitted by Samuel Smith Old Brewery for St Mary’s Vaults in Stamford
The owner of a pub which has been gathering dust for almost five years has submitted a planning application for the empty building - but whether there are plans to reopen remains a mystery.
For more than eight years a bay window at St Mary’s Vaults pub in Stamford has been boarded up due to structural damage in the surrounding stonework.
A handful of planning applications submitted to South Kesteven District Council by owner Samuel Smith Old Brewery have been approved over the years. But, due to the work never taking place, the planning permission has now expired.
Bosses at the Tadcaster-based brewery are once again seeking permission to replace the bay window, which forms part of the staff accommodation at the site in St Mary’s Street.
In the planning statement, a spokesperson for the applicant said: “Samuel Smith undertakes many projects to a high standard with the emphasis on retention of existing historical features using traditional methods and materials for a modern environment.”
St Mary's Vaults, along with the Melbourn Brothers in All Saints' Street which was under the same management, closed suddenly in August 2020 after drinkers were asked to put down their pints and leave.
The reason behind the unexpected closure remains a mystery - although at the time there were rumours of breaches of social distancing - and the doors have been shut ever since.
At the end of last year job advertisements appeared in the windows of both the Melbourn Brothers and St Mary’s Vaults which hint that the management team at Samuel Smith pubs haven’t given up on reopening the pubs.
Samuel Smith pubs are run by management couples rather than having tenants or leases and have a number of strict rules on how patrons must conduct themselves.
The Samuel Smith website specifies that its pubs are ‘havens from the digital world’ where the use of mobile phones, laptops and other technology is not allowed.
‘Friendly pub conversation is encouraged’ in the pubs but swearing is forbidden and drinks should be enjoyed in a ‘responsible’ manner.
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