THE site of a former Blackdown Hills public house has been put up for sale as a ‘development opportunity’ just weeks since planning permission was given for its skittle alley to be converted to holiday lets.

The Merry Harriers, which stood at Forches Corner, Clayhidon, near West Buckland, burned down in a suspected arson attack in 2016.

It was the second suspicious blaze to hit the pub in the space of five months, and its ruins were later demolished.

The site was then bought by Vowles Parks Ltd, of Winscombe, which won permission in 2023 to rebuild the pub.

In June of this year, the company was given approval to convert the skittle alley, which survived the fires, into five en-suite holiday units after it argued the site no longer had any ‘community value’.

However, a condition of the holiday lets approval was that the accommodation could only be used after the pub was rebuilt and reopened.

They could also only be used in conjunction with the pub and not as a separate business venture.

Now, Vowles Parks Ltd has put the 2.5-acre derelict site on the market with property and land valuation specialists Nancekivell and Partners Ltd.

It has set a guide price of £300,000 for the property.

Richard Nancekivell told the Wellington Weekly: “The site has considerable scope for redevelopment with a busy Blackdown Hills road and further undeveloped land totalling 2.5 acres.”

Mr Nancekivell said two genuine inquiries had already been received by his agency.