Wandsworth is being hailed as "the most pub-friendly borough in the country" after the council protected 120 drinking holes from redevelopment.

Wandsworth Council has removed permitted development rights from some of the borough's most distinctive bars and taverns to stop the venues being converted for another use without permission.

Wandsworth is the first local authority in the country to grant ‘Article 4 Directions’ on this scale, a move it says will force owners of the affected pubs to seek town hall approval before they can change the building's use or knock them down.

Previously the council have been "powerless to stop" pubs being converted into mini-supermarkets, estate agents, homes or shops without the need for planning permission.

The move comes amid the growing spread of mini-supermarkets which often convert high street pubs instead of taking over existing retail units.

In preparation for the Article 4 Directions, the council has already approved new planning guidance to recognise the "historic, architectural and community value of Wandsworth’s pubs".

Wandsworth Times:
The Wheatsheaf Pub in Tooting was given protected status in 2014.

Dan Watkins, the Conservative candidate in this year's Tooting by-election, has campaigned to protect pubs in the borough.

He said: 'Our successful campaigns to save the Wheatsheaf Pub and Trafalgar Arms showed how we could use new planning policies from the Government to preserve these vital community hubs.

"Working with CAMRA and Wandsworth Council we have now taken that one stage further and put in place protection for 120 local community pubs, many of which face the threat of development.

"It's taken three years of hard graft but I want to thank all of those involved in these campaigns, which have culminated in Wandsworth being the most pub-friendly borough in the country."

Among the pubs selected are: The Alma, The Ship and The Cat’s Back in Wandsworth, The Bricklayers Arms, Arab Boy and Railway in Putney, The Plough , Falcon and The Beehive in Battersea and The Selkirk, Trafalgar Arms and Wheatsheaf in Tooting as well as the Bedford, Regent and Prince of Wales in Balham.

The protection has also been applied to pubs that are currently closed, including the White Lion in Putney High Street and The Brewery Tap in Wandsworth High Street in a move that the council hopes could bring the establishments back into us.

Deputy council leader Jonathan Cook said: “Wandsworth’s pubs are now the best protected in the entire country and have a genuine defence against the relentless spread of mini-supermarkets and estate agents.

"We know how much our residents love their locals and in many cases they really are the epicentre of community life."

He added: "This could be a real turning point for our nation’s superb but vulnerable pub trade and Wandsworth is more than ready to share its approach with other authorities.”

The Article 4 Directions were published on August 12 and pub owners have all been notified.