The White Swan at Thornton-le-Clay: Owner of closed Yorkshire village pub appeals to turn it into a house

The White Swan in Thornton-le-Clay closed in 2020 when the last tenants left and was subsequently purchased by Richard Harrison, who lives in the building with his wife. The couple applied to change its use to residential, arguing that it was not viable as a business.

However following a campaign by the residents' group Save Our Swan, the council listed the pub as an Asset of Community Value, meaning it must remain as a pub and the group are given six months to attempt to raise funds to buy it themselves before it can be sold on the open market.

The Harrisons have now appealed Ryedale Council's ruling.

The Save Our Swan members collected surveys from residents who indicated that they would support the pub's re-opening.

A group spokesman said: “We anticipated that an appeal would be forthcoming and feel somewhat encouraged that the reasons offered merely duplicate those in the original planning application. We have spent the last couple of weeks working to develop a robust submission letter to rebut the appellants’ “statement of case”.

"As part of our submission, we have included results from the community survey which was returned by 566 people, the vast majority (96 per cent) of whom wished to keep the pub open, as a facility to support, not only the local custom, but also serve as a destination dining pub for the wider area. This valued facility will also support the development of tourism in Ryedale, which is currently giving a significant boost to the regional economy.

"We encourage those who have an interest in saving this pub to also lodge their own comments. As we have said from the beginning of our campaign - you only lose your village pub once, and we see this as a precious asset to our village and the wider region too.”

Public responses via Ryedale Council's website are being accepted until August 31.