The Royal – or Middle – Oak. A long-established pub in Shire Oak. Imagery from Bing! Maps.

I wouldn’t normally bother too much with this, but there’s been a fair bit of rumour locally and it’s worth pointing out that the current landlords of the Royal Oak in Shire Oak, Brownhills (known as ‘The Middle’) will apparently be taking over a refurbished Royal Exchange in Walsall Wood, and the Royal Oak has been placed on the market by it’s current owners.

For months and months there has been speculation that the pub was to be demolished for a housing development. There is certainly nothing I’ve seen to support this rumour, and there are no current planning applications outstanding on the well-loved pub at all – check for yourselves at Walsall’s Planning Interactive site.

The Royal Oak carries a price of £295,000 and is being sold by Matthew Phillips Surveyors. The accent in their material is on the saleability as a pub, rather than a development opportunity.

Of course, this doesn’t mean there won’t be a development, just that there’s no evident plan for one now. Should that change, I’ll post up details.

I do hope the pub can continue – as a typical 1930s roadhouse it’s not historically significant, but it has a lovely Art Deco interior and the potential to continue as a great community facility.

I wish the landlords well in their new venture at the Royal Exchange, which reopens later this month. You can find out a little about the refurbishment and plans on the website here.

The Royal Exchange does, of course, have a rich and varied history, which we’ve covered here before.

Good luck folks.

From Matthew Philips Surveyor’s website. Click to see the ad.