A RELIGIOUS group in Winchester is hoping to transform a derelict pub on the outskirts of the city into a thriving new church community.

The plans are for the Lunways Inn on the A33 London Road, formerly known as The Roman Post, and would see the pub replaced by a church hall for 650 people.

The pub has been derelict for almost a decade and was the subject of an arson attack in April 2004 that left it significantly damaged.

Now leaders from the charitable Winchester Gospel Hall Trust have applied to Winchester City Council for permission to create a new place of worship to go with the other hall they own in Park Road.

So far the application is only for outline planning permission, but the trust plans to raise enough money to ensure that the project can go ahead.