THE Crooked House pub will be rebuilt after the owners were ordered to return it to its original state after an “unlawful demolition”.
The iconic boozer in Himley, Staffordshire, burned down in a horror blaze on August 5 just two weeks after it was sold to new owners.
SWNSThe Crooked House pub in Himley, Staffordshire, prior to the fire[/caption]
SWNSThe demolished Crooked House pub in Dudley[/caption]
BPMThe pub was destroyed by a fire on August 5 last year[/caption]
On the day of the blaze, Staffordshire and West Midlands fire services raced to the scene on Himley Road to battle the flames but could not contain the inferno.
The shell of the charred pub was reduced to rubble by diggers just 36 hours after the blaze.
Now, the council have served an Enforcement Notice on the owners of the popular public house.
“An enforcement notice has been issued against the owners for its unlawful demolition,” Andy Street, the mayor of the West Midlands, said.
“They have been ordered to rebuild the pub back to what it was before the fire – just as we’ve been lobbying for.”
The council has engaged with the owners since the demolition but has reached a point where formal action is considered necessary.
The Mayor welcomed the order for the 18th century pub to be restored.
Posting on X, formerly Twitter, he said: “Crooked House ordered to be rebuilt.
“An enforcement notice has been issued against the owners for its unlawful demolition.
“They have been ordered to rebuild the pub back to what it was before the fire – just as we’ve been lobbying for.
“Fantastic work from South Staffordshire Council.”
The popular boozer, where coins and marbles would appear to roll uphill along the bar, was put forward for listed status protection days before it was destroyed.
It would have meant that the owners, who bought the pub in October 2023, would have needed council permission to knock it down.
The enforcement notice served against the owners now requires the building to be rebuilt by February 2027, the council said.
If work is not completed within the time limit, the local authority can prosecute for failure to comply with the notice, it added.
The owners have just 30 days to appeal and the notice must be complied with within three years.
Leader of the Council, councillor Roger Lees, said: “A huge amount of time and resources have been put into investigating the unauthorised demolition of the Crooked House.
“We have had great support from the local community, our MPs and the Mayor of the West Midlands, and from the campaign group whose aim is to see the Crooked House back to its former glory which is the key objective of the Enforcement Notice.
“We have not taken this action lightly, but we believe that it is right to bring the owners, who demolished the building without consent, to account and we are committed to do what we can to get the Crooked House rebuilt.”
Suspicion grew as the Crooked House pub in Himley, Staffs, was burnt down just days after it was sold.
The rest of the building was demolished without permission less than 48 hours later, prompting national outcry and calls for better protection for heritage pubs.
Three men, aged 33, 51, and 66, have since been arrested and bailed over the incident.
A woman, 34, and two men, aged 44 and 23, were also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent or being reckless as to whether life was endangered – they were also released on bail.
Lawyers began looking into potential breaches of the 1990 Town and Country Planning Act after the demolition.
And it has been claimed the digger that flattened the charred ruins was hired before the blaze.
PADamage to the Crooked House after horror blaze[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
