LOYAL locals at a Mapplewell pub have stepped up their fight to save it from demolition to make way for a Sainsbury's mini supermarket.
The King's Head, on Darton Lane, was put under threat in January when owner Punch Taverns submitted a planning application to flatten the pub and build a Sainsbury's Local in its place.
It was met with opposition from regulars and managers Paul Williams and Tracy Hawksworth who only took over in November.
Tracy, 43, said: "This pub has not been closed down and still has a loyal customer base and makes good weekly profits.
"It's sad that a pub still popular in the village should fall victim to yet another large supermarket chain, not to mention all the small local shops and businesses that it will have a huge impact on."
A petition has been set up with copies in the pub and shops around the village.
A Punch Taverns spokeswoman said it had agreed a deal with a food retailer.
"As a pub company, we are not in the business of closing and selling pubs," she said. "Unfortunately, after a review of our estate, the King's Head did not prove a viable business for us and so we have explored other opportunities and considered how the property might better fulfil its potential within the local community."
A Sainsbury's spokeswoman confirmed it is the retailer involved and up to 25 jobs could be created.
