Pub forced to remove 'illegal' A-boards

An outraged licensee has been forced to remove four A-boards from outside his pub after his council said they could be a "distraction" for drivers or may fall into the road.

Paul Mash, of the Garden House, in Durham, was told by the county council he must remove the boards as they were illegal under highway laws.

He claims Durham County Council threatened to take the boards away, impound them, then break them up, if he did not comply with the request.

But the licensee has vowed to fight the ban on the boards, which have been outside the pub for the five years he has been in charge.

"It's a total zero-tolerance approach and seems very, very petty," Paul told The Publican​. "These boards cost £1,000 and are vital to our business because they tell people about events we're holding - it shows we're open."

Since the boards haven't been there, the licensee said people have been unsure about whether the pub is open.

Paul added: "We're on a main road, but we're set back 30 or 40 yards, so we have the boards on the grass verge."

His landlord Enterprise Inns is helping Paul in his battle with the council - and his local MP Roberta Blackman-Woods has also taken up the case.

In response, Durham County Council said removing "illegal advertising signs on the highways" was one of its "top priorities".

Steve Keetley, head of technical services, added: "We have, therefore, asked the manager of the Garden House pub to remove signs from the grass verge in front of his premises because they were illegal under highways law.

"The signs were not only a distraction to drivers, but could easily have been blown or fallen into the road causing a hazard to vehicles."

The case is similar to a situation in Wiltshire in 2008, where a pub was forced to take down its roadside sign over fears it would encourage drink driving. However the Black Dog, in Chilmark, won an appeal against the decision and councillors allowed the sign to be re-instated.