Battle to save historic pub

More than 1,500 Willenhall residents and shoppers have signed a petition for the historic Bell pub to be rescued and made over.

The town centre pub has fallen into disrepair and a campaign was launched to get something done amid fears of arson attacks.

The petition, put together by Willenhall ward's Councillor Carl Creaney and the Campaign for Real Ale, will be presented to Walsall Council next Monday.

He said the council should be heading down the route of enforcing the sale of the property to someone who will maintain it properly.

"People across the borough think the Bell is important," Councillor Creaney said.

"We had petitions in local pubs and a lot of the signatures are from local people who know the concerns and the problems we are facing. Camra has done a lot of the work too."

Preservation officer for the Walsall branch of Camra, Keith Watkins, said: "We hope it will give some impact to the campaign, but it's also enabled the local people to have their say.

"People who never go into a pub still want an historic building like that preserved. It frames the market place and it's at the centre of Willenhall.

"I know the council has to act within the legal framework, but in the meantime it could easily be torched," Mr Watkins said.

Walsall Council has carried out essential repairs to the building and billed the owner, but said it could not legally force the sale of the building.

The Grade-II listed building is 350 years old and is the oldest in Willenhall. It survived a huge fire which destroyed the town in 1659, and closed about six years ago.

The Bell, overlooking the central market, quenched the thirst of townsfolk for more than 340 years before it was boarded up

The pub was run for many years by former boxer Dennis Powell and his wife Olive, who lived there for about two decades until the 1980s.