Wem hotel gets green light for expansion

The Premier Inn Hotel at Harmer Hill, near Wem – which currently has 20 bedrooms – has been granted permission to expand by Shropshire Council planning officers.

The new rooms will sit on the site of the current car park and a nearby field.

Planning officer Tim Rogers said the proposal could help "support the investment and development of tourism" and "enhance the role of Shropshire as a tourist destination by providing quality visitor accommodation which in turn contributes to the local economy and provides employment opportunities".

The applicants said the plans would create construction jobs and five hotel/restaurant positions once the extension opens.

Earlier this year, David Christmas, project and programme manager at Premier Inn, said the expansion was needed to meet "customer demand" and said that the hotel chain hoped the extension could be open some time early next year.

Myddle and Broughton Parish Council objected to the proposal over fears about increased noise from the additional parking spaces at the rear of the Bridgewater Arms.

The hotel currently has 69 car parking spaces but would see an additional 19 created in the extension.

But Mr Rogers said that the design and scale of the plans would not have an adverse impact on neighbouring houses.