Since over 130 local supporters of the The Bull publicly demonstrated their support for its retention as a public house in November 2009, the community has waited patiently, through two public meetings with developers, a change of ownership and a make-or-break planning committee meeting in February 2018 for work to start to allow for the eventual re-opening of our village pub.

Now under the ownership of the Matthews family, owners of the brickworks in the village, the first phase of the development, the construction of the superb new eco-build nursery was eventually completed last year allowing the popular Village Nursery to relocate from its temporary premises in the old pub.

Unfortunately Covid put a necessary brake on the plans for development of the pub itself, including extensive renovations and a rear extension to provide a restaurant, but we are pleased to be informed that the owners are currently drawing up the necessary budget and considering a few minor design changes and are hoping to start the work, pandemic permitting, later this year. We can only hope that 2022 not only brings full relief from Covid but the reopening of this valuable and well-loved community asset.

Save the Bull Group

We are finally able to reveal some of the mysteries lying beneath the shroud of scaffolding and plastic that envelops the works next to The Bull.
Whilst it does seem a very long time since work started on the new building to house the village nursery presently situated in the pub, an enormous
amount has been done.

Starting with the spoil excavated from the footings which was mechanically separated into soil for use on the garden surrounds and flint which was used as a base to reduce the use of concrete, every consideration has been given to reduce the carbon footprint of the development and to the use of eco-friendly materials.

The internal walls are built using blocks newly developed and manufactured to meet modern building standards at the village brickworks using local straw and clay with facing bricks from the same source. The
timbers are constructed using a process whereby English Larch waste and offcuts are made into a composite structural material and English grown
hemp is made into blocks at the brickworks and used as infill of the walls to provide an insulation factor 50% more than that required under present building rules.

Recycled car windscreens form an unlikely material that will provide a solid and insulating base for the internal floor and the mortar binding the building together and for rendering the internal wall is simply a mix of local clay and straw.

When completed the building will have a “green” roof, planted with indigenous plants and will sit considerably lower in the landscape than the present covering suggests. In short, this unique building, the first of its kind in this country, will not only serve a most practical purpose but will be one in which the Matthews family and indeed our village can take enormous pride.

At last! After a very long wait, the District Council planning dept. have agreed all the necessary conditions attached to the planning permission granted way back in January 2018 and work can now commence on the new children’s nursery.

Hardcore has been laid for the base of the new building and an entrance created through the hedge onto the Chesham Road. Once work on the actual building commences, it is planned to post a video blog on YouTube so that anyone interested in the construction of this unique building can follow its progress.

Once the building has been completed and the nursery has relocated there from the old pub then work can start on The Bull itself. Besides a complete internal refurbishment, this work includes the addition of a new entrance and atrium and a restaurant extension at the rear, sympathetically designed to compliment the existing structure.

Further details will be posted to www.bellingdon.com as they become available.

Andrew Barratt

Ahead of Thursday’s planning meeting, our reasons for supporting the plans submitted for the redevelopment of the Bull pub and new nursery are as follows:

The nursery, which had to move from Cholesbury Village Hall, is a proven
success, highly rated by Ofsted, and presently caters for over 100
children in providing nursery and after school activities. All children are
from no more than a 3.5 mile radius and, given the ongoing demand, will be
able to increase numbers of both children and staff. There is a desperate
shortage of such facilities within the county and the management have
tried, unsuccessfully to find an alternative premises within a 5 mile
radius. Since all other nurseries within the area are full, there poses the
problem of accommodating children presently served by our village nursery
should it be forced to close.

Great efforts have been made to ensure that the new building is
environmentally friendly with a very low profile and a planted roof so will
sit quietly in the landscape.

The land on which it is proposed to build is presently ancillary commercial
pub land, is not accessed by public right of way nor can it be readily seen
from any adjacent right of way.

With the planned improvements to the pub, the managers will be able to
deliver children’s meals to the nursery which will not only greatly improve
the service but will provide a great basis for a sustainable business at
the pub.

Whilst as a group, we strongly support the preservation of the green belt,
we believe that a new building of this nature in this location will not
impinge greatly on the visual amenity, nor create any sort of precedent but
will provide two valuable community resources which are demonstrably
supported by the village.

The decision will be made by the full committee and we know that the
committee takes notice of a good show of support. So, if you are able to
attend this planning meeting, we would be delighted to have your support at
the planning meeting to consider the plans to be held THIS Thursday January 11th from 6:30pm at the Council Offices.

On behalf of The Save The Bull Group – Bellingdon savethebull@bellingdon.com