Anger as town hall campaign fails

The council said it could not gamble on keeping the hall open

A decision to demolish a Lincolnshire town's Victorian town hall has provoked angry scenes from campaigners.

East Lindsey District Council voted not to save the empty building in Horncastle despite a community group's rescue plan.

The group said there was enough demand to run the hall but officials felt the business plan was not robust enough.

Councillors faced prolonged shouts of protest from campaigners as they left the meeting.

The committee said that if they had kept the building open, it would have been an unacceptable gamble with public money.

Moves to save the hall were backed by The Victorian Society, a charity which seeks to safeguard Victorian and Edwardian buildings and monuments.

But the council said it cost a minimum of £35,000 a year to maintain the structure.

Demolition is expected to go ahead later in the year.