The brewery that owns a much-loved community pub in St Neots has confirmed it has withdrawn its planning application to build two new homes in the car park and beer garden of the pub.

St Neots residents and customers at The Cambridgeshire Hunter were distraught when they learnt that a plans had been submitted to build two homes on the pub's land.

The pub hosts the annual Fire Truck Pull, which raises money for the Burns Camp charity, and is home to a popular beer garden that has become a favourite amongst locals.

When the application was made public the community rallied around to support the pub amid fears it would lose some of its land.

However, today (August 7), Wells & Co have confirmed that they have withdrawn their planning application after seeing the success of The Cambridgeshire Hunter since the landlords (Neil Morris and Gary Jackson) took over.

A spokesperson for Wells & Co said: "We are happy to share the news that we have withdrawn our proposal for planning permission around some of the outside area at The Cambridgeshire Hunter in St Neots. 

"Prior to Neil and Gary taking over as landlords of the pub in December 2023, we had made the decision to seek planning permission for the erection of two dwellings on the south side of the pub garden.

"At this point in time the pub garden had been underutilised for several years and the decision made sense. As a business we're constantly reviewing our pub estate and occasionally we do look to sell underutilised land to release funds and reinvest them into our estate, including carrying out pub refurbishments. 

"Since the end of last year, we're delighted to see how Neil and Gary have given the pub a completely new lease of life, including the garden which during spring and summer this year has been packed out with community, charity and sports events.

"Given that the garden has become integral to Neil and Gary’s success, we're pleased to share that we have made the decision to withdraw our proposal for planning permission. 

"We would like to thank the Eynesbury and St Neots community for their fantastic support for Neil and Gary and The Cambridgeshire Hunter, and we look forward to seeing what's next for this brilliant pub and team!"