A planning application has been submitted to transform an historic pub shut for years into a restaurant.

Havering Council received an application on February 8 from which seeks approval to change the use of the ground floor of the Durham Arms in Brentwood Road from a pub to a restaurant.

It also mentions installing an extractor system to the rear of the building and replacing the existing vehicle crossover with a new one.

The first floor of the site is currently residential and will remain as such, the application suggests.

The pub has been shut since 2019, and a blaze broke out on the building’s top floor in May 2023 that damaged part of a flat.

Read More: The Durham Arms in Romford taken over by new owners

It was bought by private investment company C4Chatga Ltd in November 2023. Nazim Uddin, the company director, previously told the Recorder that the building had become "a hub for anti-social activities".

Their vision, he had said, was to transform it into a “dynamic space” that serves the community.

A heritage statement attached with the planning application, submitted by Cityscape Planning and Architecture Ltd, stated that the site is a late nineteenth century public house which is included within Havering’s Local Heritage List “for its architectural and historic interest”.

It added: “In its disused condition, the public house has unfortunately attracted anti-social behaviour that the proposal intends to remedy by reintroducing a positive use at the site in the form of a welcoming restaurant for families and the community at large."

It further claimed that the proposed restaurant will not be a fast-food takeaway and intends to provide a “high-end experience for patrons”.

The capacity of the restaurant is proposed to be capped at 73 customers, with daily opening hours being from 12pm to 11pm.

The eatery, it said, will not have a major impact upon the highways network or parking situation in the area as the site has good public transport accessibility and local bus routes.

Councillor Judith Holt, of St Albans Ward, shared pictures of some initial refurbishment work being done at the site.

She said she is glad that the pub is being brought back into community use after being abandoned for some years.

A decision on the planning application is expected to be made by April 9.

Detailed documents can be found on council’s website- https://development.havering.gov.uk/OcellaWeb/planningDetails?reference=P0189.24&from=planningSearch