Find, save and share Public Notices that affect you in the area.
Search the Public Notice Portal What is the Public Notice Portal?What is the Public Notice Portal?
The Public Notice Portal carries statutory public notices published in local newspapers and is the fastest and most effective way of finding out what is happening in YOUR neighbourhood.
Search the Public Notice PortalPlans to turn a listed former pub site into a new restaurant have hit a roadblock after a conservation officer raised concerns over ‘unauthorised’ works.
The Bel and the Dragon on the corner of Datchet Road and Thames Street in Windsor is a Grade II listed building and former pub.
Fuller, Smith & Turner PLC owns various the Bel and the Dragon locations across the country but the company sold the Windsor site in February last year.
Now plans are in motion to renovate the pub into a restaurant expected to open in early 2027, if plans are approved.
As part of the wider refurbishment, Amit Anand, the applicant, submitted a listed building consent application to the Royal Borough to carry out some internal works.
The existing bar is ‘not fit for purpose’, the application said, and the proposal seeks permission to remove internal walls to create a larger bar area.
Timber studs are in a ‘poor structural state’ and have to be removed, while support beams and floor joists show signs of ‘deflection and movement’.
Because of the historical significance of the building, the original timbers would be retained and strengthened where possible, the application said.
The Royal Borough’s principal conservation officer, Alisha Lad, visited the site to assess how the works would impact the building within Windsor’s Conservation Area.
Ms Lad objected to the proposals, saying further information and clarification from the applicant are needed.
She said it appears several works have already been carried out which were ‘unauthorised’ and ‘remain liable to enforcement’.
This included the stripping of internal finishes, plaster ceilings and panelling to walls.
Brickwork and structural beams are ‘exposed in some areas’, Ms Lad’s comment says.
During her visit, she was told that Thames Water carried out the works because of a leak at the location.
But nevertheless, she said, the owner of the building failed to inform the council about these required works, when they should have done.
All the works, including the stripping out of materials, have resulted in ‘permanent loss’.
“[These] remain unauthorised and liable to enforcement action,” wrote Ms Lad.
Ultimately, Ms Lad’s objection said the proposed work would harm the listed building and the character and appearance of Windsor’s conservation area.
Following the conservation officer’s objection, the application was withdrawn.
However, a spokesperson for the applicant told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the plans will be resubmitted with some changes.
“We’ve taken the decision to withdraw the current application so that we can carefully consider the conservation officer’s comments before submitting revised proposals,” the spokesperson said.
Owners ‘want to make sure any refurbishment is sympathetic to its historic character while introducing a fresh and exciting new chapter for Windsor’, the spokesperson added.
She said: “Our vision is to create a restaurant centred around our interpretation of contemporary British classics in a setting that respects the building’s heritage.
“We remain committed to bringing something distinctive to Windsor and currently expect to open in early 2027.”
Visit rbwm.gov.uk and insert 26/00751/LBC into the council’s planning portal to view the plans.
