By 
The former Salmon Tail pub on the corner of Evesham Road and Sanctus Road in Stratford-upon-Avon, which most recently traded as The Paddock, could become a shop with four flats above it, plus a new house in its car park. The plans have split opinion: most residents who have commented support them, but the county council’s highways team has objected for now, and the ward councillor says the shop would bring too much traffic into Sanctus Road.
What’s planned
The application, made by Alexander Group and registered by Stratford-on-Avon District Council on 2 September, would extend and convert the empty pub into:
- a ground-floor shop of about 280 square metres;
- four two-bedroom flats on the first and second floors, with their own entrance;
- a new two-bedroom house in the car park, replacing a single-storey outbuilding;
- 17 parking spaces, including five with electric vehicle chargers and three accessible spaces, reached from Sanctus Road.
The applicant’s planning statement says the pub is no longer viable. It says a viability assessment by pub property surveyors found “a history of repeated business failures”, despite favourable lease terms and investment, and that the building is partly dilapidated. It adds that the area has plenty of other pubs and that the building is not listed as an Asset of Community Value. A 2022 plan for four one-bedroom flats on the site was refused on highway grounds.
Highways objection
Warwickshire County Council, the highway authority, has objected until more information is supplied. It says the plans show three existing vehicle entrances when there are only two, and that the new access proposed for delivery lorries would mean removing about ten on-street permit parking spaces in residents’ zone S9, which would need a legal traffic order and public consultation. It has asked for a parking survey, visibility splays, a road safety audit and a fully measured site plan.
What the councils and residents say
Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council supports the change to shop and homes in principle, but says the new house “appears cramped and surrounded by parking” and that the large flat-roofed extension is “unsightly and detrimental to the street scene”. The district council’s environmental health team has no objection, subject to the noise report’s recommendations.
Councillor Gill Cleeve, the town councillor for Shottery ward, has objected to the application as submitted. She supports homes on the site but says the plans point to a convenience store, and that the applicant’s own figures suggest around 628 vehicle movements a day through Sanctus Road, “roughly six times the traffic of the former pub”. She also raises the safety of children walking to King Edward VI School and Stratford Primary, and asks for limits on use, opening hours and deliveries if the plans are approved.
Of the 20 public comments on the council’s planning website, 12 support the plans, seven object and one is neutral. Supporters say the building has become an eyesore and that the pub never worked, and welcome new homes and jobs. Most objectors are happy with flats but not the shop, pointing to existing shops nearby, deliveries and pressure on parking in Sanctus Road.
What happens next
The formal consultation ended on 8 October, and the council’s target date for a decision is 28 October. You can read the documents and comments on the planning application (26/02209/FUL). For other applications near you, see Planning near me, and for pubs that are still pouring, our guide to the best pubs in Stratford.
Alex Harrington
Alex Harrington grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and runs What's up, Stratford? as an independent guide to the town.
