Hundreds of people have signed a petition to save a 'long-standing bastion of live music' near Reading town centre which could be put 'at risk' by flats plans.

The Butler is a historic pub near the town centre that dates back to 1830 and has a reputation as one of the few music venues in the town.

A view of upcoming events on its profile on the 'Whats On Reading' website shows five music events are scheduled within the next three weeks.

But there are fears that The Butler could be put at risk by future noise complaints from possible new flats that could be built nearby which has prompted a petition to be set up on Change.org.

The concerns have been raised as developer Hamble Residential has submitted an appeal to the government planning inspectorate to build a five-storey block containing 15 apartments to the rear of the pub.

READ MORE: Flats could still be built at the back of The Butler pub near the town centre

The petition calls for the appeal to be dismissed and The Butler to be protected from future development.

Harry Jones, who set up the petition, said: "The Butler in Chatham Street is now one of the most well-loved, respected and prolific live music venues in Reading, giving life to a music scene that has been dwindling for the last number of years as many popular live music pubs around the centre of town have closed down, leaving only a few major venues left which continue to put on great, regular gigs.

"The Butler is also fortunate enough to be owned by someone who is a great supporter of original artists who are both local and from out of town, something we need to see more of, as it goes without saying that the big artists you know and love would probably never have got anywhere without a venue willing to help them get a foot in the door - The Butler is that door!

"As such, we cannot stand by and let it be closed by yet another instance of an application to build flats next to a long-standing bastion of live music.

"Please help us petition against this ridiculous application and stop this monstrosity being built in possibly the worst place possible, hopefully with enough support we can fight this and help The Butler continue to thrive unaffected by interference as the live music venue it should be!"

A CGI of what the apartments building would look like in relation to The Butler pub. A plan has been submitted to replace 10 Eaton Place with apartments. Credit: AnomalyA CGI of what the apartments building would look like in relation to The Butler pub. A plan has been submitted to replace 10 Eaton Place with apartments. Credit: Anomaly

The petition has 715 signatures at the time of writing. You can find it here.

The Butler is contained within the 'West Side Major Opportunity Area' in Reading Borough Council's Local Plan, within the sub-area of Chatham Street and Oxford Road as policy CR12c.

The policy states that buildings that are inappropriately sized will not be permitted, identifying the area, stating that it can fit between 180-260 new homes.

The context of The Butler pub and its surrounding area, which had had plans for more than 100 flats. The context of The Butler pub and its surrounding area, which had had plans for more than 100 flats. Credit: Anomaly

The council's planning applications committee rejected Hamble Residential's project to build 15 apartments at the back of The Butler last November.

You can view the application on the council's planning website using reference 201104, and find the appeal on the planning inspectorate website using reference APP/E0345/W/24/3343524.

The committee also recently rejected a plan to replace nearby Eaton Court with 120 flats in part out of concerns over potential future noise complaints affecting The Butler and The Face Bar club in Ambrose Place.