New plans for popular Derbyshire pub after three failed schemes

The owners of a well-known Derbyshire pub have put forward further new development plans after hitting several setbacks in the past two years. Andrea and Chris Harvey, through Henfox Ltd, have now applied to reconfigure the caravan park of the Knockerdown Inn near Carsington Water, build a toilet and shower block and extend its car park by 26 spaces from 25 to 51.

Derbyshire Dales District Council will decide on the plans in the next few months. This latest application follows three sets of failed expansion plans since December 2022.

In December 2022 plans to turn the pub site into a haven for motoring enthusiasts with a coffee shop, car display area and a total of 150 parking spaces were rejected – with opposition from hundreds of people, nine parish councils and the county’s police and crime commissioner (PCC). Meanwhile, in September 2023, plans for a 32-space car park extension were rejected after a mass wave of opposition from scores of residents, seven parish councils and Derbyshire’s PCC.

Plans for four “luxury” holiday lodges and a 24-space car park extension and the removal of the campsite were filed in April this year but have now been withdrawn. The fourth set of plans put forward by the new owners aims to relieve a “cramped” site and improve parking for visitors, with the site said to frequently have insufficient space.

A document submitted with the scheme says: “The applicants have recently purchased the Knockerdown Inn and have re-opened it as a public house and restaurant.

“Their next priority is to improve facilities at both the public house and the camping and caravan site. The existing car park at the public house is somewhat cramped and is poorly laid out.

“It quickly reaches capacity and, given that most visitors tend to arrive by car, means that potential customers are being lost due to having nowhere to park. The caravan site has grass pitches and no formal access tracks, which causes difficulty in inclement weather.

“Toilet and shower facilities need modernisation to continue to attract visitors in this increasingly competitive sector. The applicants therefore propose to reconfigure the existing caravan site to provide formally laid out, surfaced pitches accessed off a metalled track.

“A new toilet and shower block and a chemical toilet disposal are proposed to improve the offer of the facility. It is also proposed to extend the existing public house car park into the camping field to provide an additional 24 spaces.

“The proposals involve the improvement of existing and established tourist accommodation associated with an existing and established rural public house and restaurant. They would therefore facilitate the sustainable growth of the existing tourism enterprise, as well as contributing towards the viability of the existing public house and restaurant.”

It concludes: “The application proposes the provision of improved facilities at an existing and established caravan and camping site and the expansion of a car park at an existing and established rural enterprise. The proposals are sensitive to their context and would not harm the character and appearance of their rural surroundings.”