Closure of much-loved Labour club averted

6 days ago

Martin HeathHertfordshire political reporter

News image — Jennifer Barton's petition to save the club collected more than 1,000 signatures

Martin Heath/BBC Jennifer Barton with long blonde hair, wearing a blue sweater and sitting in front of the club bar, which is made of wood and is behind a gold-coloured railing. Bottles, optics and a cash register are visible at the bar, and a person in a grey top is preparing a drink. — Jennifer Barton's petition to save the club collected more than 1,000 signatures

A Labour club that was due to close to make way for a housing development has been saved after a planned sale of the site was withdrawn.

The William Morris Labour Club in South Oxhey, which has served the community for more than 60 years, had been expected to serve its last pint at the end of April.

Its directors said the venue would now remain open "for the foreseeable future".

They said Three Rivers District Council, which owns the site, must identify new premises for the club before any redevelopment goes ahead.

The club, which was opened in 1963 on the post-war South Oxhey estate near Watford, is one of the area's few remaining community facilities.

Homes were built in the area after World War Two for 3,850 families from the East End of London.

Club members said they were "devastated" when they received letters announcing its closure.

Martin Heath/BBC Exterior shot of the club, with a white board above the door showing WILLIAM MORRIS LABOUR CLUB in green lettering. There is union jack bunting over the lintel and a vertical sign to the left of the door states PRIVATE MEMBERS CLUB. Two wooden tables with benches around them are visible in the foreground and a car is parked to the left. — The club has been serving the South Oxhey estate since 1963

According to the directors, the council indicated last year that it was prepared to accept the surrender of the club's lease, which still had more than a decade to run.

The club agreed and a memorandum of sale was drafted as part of the process.

The site forms part of the South Oxhey Initiative - a £150m regeneration project which includes 540 homes and new shops.

However, with the council not yet ready to redevelop the land and no alternative venue available, the memorandum has been withdrawn.

Steve McKay/Geograph Three-storey brick-built apartment buildings with balconies on the 1st and 2nd floor windows. There is a low brick wall around the block, and there are hedges in front of some of the apartments. A further block is visible in the background, and there is a grassed area to the right, fringed by a path. — South Oxhey was developed in the 1950s to deal with a post-war housing crisis

The directors said: "The closure has been called off and the club will still continue to serve the community."

They added that the support shown by local people demonstrated why the council's successor "needs to reprovision the club in South Oxhey when that time comes".

'Worked my socks off'

Local councillor Stephen Cox, who helped with the negotiations, said he was "absolutely ecstatic".

"I've worked my socks off since the closure was announced to have this averted," he said. "I'm very pleased that the directors have had a change of heart."

Viv French, from the members' steering group, said the news was a "huge win".

"It didn't just happen by magic," she said. "It happened because people made their voices heard at different arenas, and they supported the fight and stood up to be counted."

Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.