New jobs as Cannock bar to get dance area

A Staffordshire bar has been given the go-ahead for a £75,000 expansion plan that will create 10 jobs.

Cannock's Bank Bar and Lounge has won the planning approval.

It has received permission to convert disused office space at the back of its existing site into a function room.

The new suite at the venue, in Wolverhampton Road, will accommodate 120 people and will include a dance floor and self-contained bar.

It is hoped the new area will be open for business early next year after Cannock Chase Council planners granted permission this week.

The 10 new jobs on offer will include bar staff, doormen and catering staff.

The business is owned by Alastair Payne, who toured as a back-up musician with Britpop superstars Blur before opening the bar.

He said: "At the moment we haven't got a dance floor and it is something that is often mentioned to us.

"The room will also be used for private functions so people will be able to use the Bank Bar and Lounge to celebrate their birthdays or other special occasions."

The building takes its name from its former use as a branch of Lloyds TSB.

It was opened under its current guise in 2006.