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Households in a Herefordshire village will each pay more than £800 over the next 25 years for a small chapel set to become a community venue.

A recent meeting of Shobdon parish council agreed to borrow £151,430 over 25 years at a fixed rate, with annual repayment of both capital and interest of around £10,907, for the village’s Methodist Chapel on the main B4362 through the village, west of Leominster.

“This was proposed by Coun [Richard] Bowen and seconded by Coun Sue Whittaker – all councillors agreed,” according to draft minutes of the meeting.

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At this rate, the parish will end up paying £272,675, which for a typical band D property will add £32.30 a year over the 25-year period to the parish “precept”, the local levy which is added to council tax bills.

The current band D precept for the parish is £89.58, which would go up 36 per cent with the additional sum, to £121.88.

An earlier parish council meeting in May decided the rise “will be subject to a precept increase consultation” with residents.


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A parish council representative said this increase will be discussed at a full council meeting on November 25.

They added that the parish council had been preparing an application for the government’s Community Ownership Fund, which would have covered 80 per cent of the cost, “but due to the election period we were not able to apply for the grant”.

They parish council has said it is looking for local tradespeople to tender for the various works that will be needed before it can open to the community.

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The former chapel is still listed with local estate agents McCartneys for an asking price of £75,000 – slightly less than half the sum the parish council plans to borrow to buy it.

It lists the property as “under offer” and describes it as having “large potential, subject to the relevant consents”.

According to the My Wesleyan Methodists website, the chapel was built around 1924 and refurbished inside in 1976. It appears to have remained in use up until now.