The historic Shave Cross Inn in the Marshwood Vale is up for sale again.

The 700-year old inn was previously put on the market last August after proprietors Roy and Mel Warburton withdrew their planning application to change the use of the property from a pub to a private dwelling.

The planning application had been met with dozens of objects from individuals, Upper Marshwood Vale parish councillors and MP Oliver Letwin.

The pub and upstairs accommodation is being marketed with a guide price of £455,000, and is advertised as an ‘award winning Grade-II listed that-ched pub’ with a ‘feature’ garden seating up to 100 customers.

Roy Warburton, who has owned and run the Shave Cross Inn for more than 12 years, said they decided to sell the pub because he had suffered a stroke.

Mr Warburton said he would be sad to leave the pub, adding: “I don’t want to see the pub close but obviously I can’t do the work. If it doesn’t sell I will [still] close it. I bought the business when it had been closed down for 14 months anyway.”

Marshwood Vale parish councillor Ali Cameron suggested in the parish council magazine there was information Mr Warburton may have intended to occupy the nearby accommodation block – which is tied to the inn through a planning condition.

A spokesman for West Dorset District Council’s planning department said: “The situation at the moment is that there isn’t a breach of planning control as we understand it at the present time. But there is a condition that links the occupancy of that block to the pub.”

Mr Warburton said the block was not up for sale with the rest of the property.

“The accommodation block is a separate company and that’s not up for sale,” he said.

Trevor Richards, parish councillor for the Marshwood area, said: “As a resident of the local area I would be very sad to see it close down [if it didn’t sell], and I’m sure I echo the feelings of a lot of local people, but I’m not in a position to comment as a councillor.”