PLANS to demolish a North Yorkshire pub and build new homes in its place have been submitted by developers.

Enterprise Inns have submitted an outline planning application to Selby District Council to demolish The Wheatsheaf pub in Hambleton and build seven new houses on the site.

The houses, a mix of three and four bedroom detached and semi-detached homes, would be built on the site of the pub, in Main Road. A new access road would also be built.

A report submitted by developers said: “The public house lies vacant and is no longer considered to be commercial viable, in part due to the changing nature of the pub industry and the economic downturn.

“Existing alternative facilities are located more towards the centre of the village, and are more readily accessible to local residents.

“The landowner, Enterprise Inns, have therefore been seeking alternative uses for the site, and given its surrounding uses it is considered that housing would be the most appropriate form of development on the site.”

The Enterprise Inns report said: “The public house has been closed for more than 12 months and has been on the market since the start of the year (2012).

"This application seeks redevelopment of the whole site as an alternative use of the land that will benefit the local area by providing much-needed new family housing, and will also ensure that a site on the main road through the village does not remain closed and become derelict over time.”

It also said the Wheatsheaf “had until closure been struggling in recent years, as the industry as a whole has seen a decline in demand, and the loss of the derelict pub was offset by two operating pubs within walking distance.”

The report by developers also said the new housing scheme would significantly improve highway safety at the site, by replacing the substandard access with better sightlines into Main Road.

A North Yorkshire Police report did not object to the scheme in principle but recommended a number of safety initiatives.