PUB backers have taken their campaign to one of Winchester's seats of power.

Residents are trying to stop the demolition of the Stanmore Hotel and its replacement by a nursing home.

They say the closure would rip the heart out of their community.

A petition with some 750 signatures was handed to the mayor Sue Nelmes outside her official residence, Abbey House.

Campaigner Glenn Sumner, of Sheridan Close, said: "The Stanmore is the heart of the community and most of Winchester uses it.

"It is one of the few pubs that can cater for big events like weddings, funerals and christenings, those sort of functions.

"There are few hotels left in Winchester. It has six rooms and they are usually fully booked.

"So many buildings have been knocked down. We should make a stand."

Pub regular William Brown, of Minden Way, said: "I have been going to the Stanmore almost all my life. I first went there in 1940 with my dad. With a good landlord and landlady it would be a success.

"It has great potential.

Mr Brown said there was a lot of history there. General Montgomery visited in the Second World War and Portsmouth football team stayed there before winning the FA Cup in 1939.

Wendy Ward, of the Pride in Stanmore Campaign, of Thurmond Crescent, said: "The plans are diabolical. They want to take this away and replace it with something that local people could not afford.

"We are going to fight this."

Alan Weeks, former chairman of Winchester Residents' Association and a resident of Stanmore Lane, said: "There is an important principle. There are other pubs where the owners are waiting to see what happens.

"If the Stanmore goes, there could be a deluge of applications."

Colten Care wants to build a 65-bedroom nursing home. It says there is a nearby alternative, the New Queens Head, within walking distance.

In recent years several Winchester pubs have shut, including Chimneys in Weeke, which has since been demolished. Others include the Prince of Wales in Hyde, and two in St Cross.