A FORMER pub which has been converted into a restaurant could face legal action after apparently breaching planning conditions.

Darlington Borough Council has confirmed it has taken legal advice over what to do with the Raby Hunt at Summerhouse.

The restaurant has been the subject of a complaint to the council from the Darlington branch of the Campaign for Real Ale.

The organisation said the buisness was breaching a Section 106 planning agreement which required the Raby Hunt to be used as a public house.

However, the proprietors maintain that the building is still regularly used as a public house.

The council agreed this week that, by marketing itself as a restaurant, it was failing to comply with the conditions.

The Raby Hunt, which describes itself as a “restaurant with rooms”, was reopened by Russell and Helen Close, with their son, James, in October last year.

The Section 106 agreement was set in 2003 when a previous landlord was given permission to modify the building to form a smaller pub and a house.

An earlier application to close the pub and convert it into two houses was rejected by the council in 2002 after opposition from villagers.

The Close family ran a Michelin- rated B&B in the middle of Hamsterley Forest before moving to Summerhouse.

The Raby Hunt’s website said the restaurant had seating for 30, as well as two recently refurbished public bars “perfect for that casual beer or a glass of wine”.

A council spokeswoman said: “We are aware of the situation and are taking legal advice to clarify our position.”

The grade II-listed Raby Hunt has been an inn since the early to mid-1800s.

Trevor Daynes, of Darlington Camra, said: “This is the only pub in the area. It’s a rural area, and pretty sparsely populated for pubs. We wanted to see if we could do anything about it.”

Russell Close said: “We have two public bars which are used regularly, and people regularly come in just for a drink, and the principal use of the premises is for drinking. We market the restaurant as a restaurant, but there are three strands to the business, the drinking, the food and the sleeping, and we market each one separately.”