Hooded Ram has submitted a retrospective planning application for its brewery in Douglas after it emerged it doesn’t have the necessary approval.

The building is recorded in the application as The Depot, Leigh Terrace, Douglas, which is on the South Quay in Douglas,

The application, submitted by Endless Design Limited, on behalf of Hooded Ram Brewery Co Ltd acknowledges that the building doesn’t have the planning approval it believed it had.

Jim Brookman from Endless Design Limited said in the application: ’The above property has been operating as the brewery for the Hooded Ram Brewery since November, 2017.

’However, it has been brought to the applicants’ attention that they have been unwittingly doing so in breach of planning regulations.’

Mr Brookman continued that the brewery had been set up ’following consultation with the planning department’ and ’was advised’ that a change of use application was not required.

However it has not come to light that the previous use of the building by Go Marketing had not met the conditions for classification of ’light industry’ as it had been in effect a wholesaler for over 10 years which mean it was ’effectively overriding the authorised use of the property’.

Mr Brookman added: ’This fact had not been highlighted during the sale and purchase of the site. Furthermore a certificate of lawfulness application would not be viable as the proposed usage is to revert to the original, now superseded, light industrial use.’

And he called the circumstances which led to the need for the application as ’unfortunate’.

He also told planners that since opening, the brewery has had no complaints regarding its usage and it had an ’open door’ policy and will seek to run tours of the brewery.