You could soon eat, drink, swim, and stay at a pub in Reading (when it's safe to do so).
Plans have been submitted by the Jolly Anglers to add a bed and breakfast (B&B) to its arsenal, having already built a swimming pool in lockdown.
The B&B would make use of four bedrooms above the pub and only needs a certificate of lawfulness from Reading Borough Council (RBC) to go ahead with the proposal.
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The Jolly Anglers, which is by the river in east Reading at 314-316 Kennet Side, caught wide attention with its lockdown transformation last year.
Pub landlord Xemal Zeqiri, who bought the east Reading riverside pub in February 2019, installed a 25ft-long swimming pool, 86-inch TV, pizza oven, and hot tub over the spring and summer lockdown, turning the venue into an “Ibiza resort”.
Although a councillor suggested the pub could be in hot water for not first seeking permission from RBC for the transformation, the local authority later confirmed the works were acceptable.
Councillor Tony Page, RBC’s lead member for Planning, had raised concerns about the construction of the pool.
The Jolly Anglers
He said: “Construction of that sort would normally require a planning application.
“What concerns me is making sure it has been constructed in a safe way. How is it drained? How is it cleaned?”
Mr Zeqiri responded at the time: “We do have plans to make it available for swimming in the future, however this is going to be exclusively for guests of our B’n’B and will, of course, depend on the situation with Covid-19.
“In regard to the drainage and cleaning of the swimming pool we have done a great deal of research and will be hiring out a specialist company to ensure this is done to the highest standard.
“They will be draining and replacing the water in the pool routinely as well as performing a deep clean of the inside to a professional standard.”
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Mr Zeqiri spent a total of around £4,000 transforming the garden, with most of that spent on the pool, pizza oven, hot tub and TV.
He said the transformation tripled trade over the summer months last year during the post-lockdown period.
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