Warwick District Council’s planning committee voted on Tuesday to allow conversion of the Wellesbourne Road premises, despite misgivings from Barford, Wasperton and Sherbourne joint parish council.

The parish council had argued that the shop’s owners had made “totally unrealistic” rental and sale valuations making it unlikely to attract new tenants, and that a store in the village was still viable.

But planners feared a second shop might compete with a community shop set up by villagers afer the post office closed in 2006. This is due to open in October and officials warned a drop in passing trade caused by the village’s bypass meant it might not survive commercial competition.

Committee chairman Coun Bertie Mackay (Ind, Stoneleigh) felt villagers should support their store. He said: “The new shop will involve the community, which means the community is morally committed to supporting it.”

The village’s post office is now run from the village hall and will be brought into the new shop when it opens. Coun Roger Copping (Lib Dem, Leamington Manor) predicted that it might be impossible to keep a commercially-run store open.

But Labour councillor John Barrott (Leamington Willes) feared the opposite might be true.

He warned that because it was run only by volunteers the village store might not be able to survive and argued commercial premises should remain available.

Parish councillors were also unhappy about demolition of an outbuilding which once housed the village’s cinema as well as the design of the homes, and warned the position of new driveways could be dangerous.

But Coun Ann Blacklock (Lib Dem, Kenilworth Abbey) believed the proposals would enhance the village’s conservation area and said that she was happy to support the conversion of the former post office because of the “special circumstances” created by the community shop.

The committee voted by a majority to allow the demolition and change of use.