A new wedding venue is set to open in Southminster, after Maldon district councillors approved the plans last night (Wednesday 13 October).

Members of the district council's south eastern area planning committee approved the proposal by the owners of Southminster Hall to turn part of the building into a wedding venue - for a temporary period of two years.

Kathryn Matthews, a planning officer at the council, said the two-year time limit would "give the opportunity for the use of the site as a wedding venue to be assessed".

The plans involve turning part of Southminster Hall, which has been owned by members of the Cooper family for over 60 years, into a ceremony room.

They also plan to convert its outbuildings into overnight accommodation, add a marquee, outdoor toilet facilities and a parking area.

The rest of the Victorian building, which can be found on Hall Road, will be retained as private residential use.

Planning officers had recommended approval of the application.

Speaking in support of the temporary application, Councillor Adrian Fluker said: "It does provide a much-needed opportunity for employment in the village but noise is a concern.

"However, I note that this application is for temporary permission and I think that gives members of the public a lot of comfort."

The wedding venue is set to create three jobs by recruiting one full-time and two-part time employees.

Councillor Fluker also proposed to amend the application so that the venue will open at 11am and close at 11pm, rather than closing at 11.30pm.

He said that this would allow guests to leave in an "orderly manner" so that the venue can be cleared by midnight.

Including this amendment, Councillor Fluker proposed to accept the officers' recommendation for approval of the temporary application.

This was seconded by Councillor Brian Beale and voted through unanimously by the committee - with 10 councillors voting in favour of the proposal.

Planning permission will expire in two years, at which point the family will need to reapply.