A village pub and its adjoining car park have been sold at auction for a total of £352,000.

The Bell Inn at Seend, which was owned by Wadworths, came under the hammer at a sale organised by Strakers in Swindon.

The pub itself, which has planning to become a five bedroom house, went for £252,000, which was £52,000 above the guide price.

Wadworth chief executive Chris Welham indicated year that the pub would be sold off. He said: “The Bell at Seend has been closed now for the best part of two years. It is a difficult site and we have been unable to find an appropriate business partner to operate the Bell.

"Having considered all of our options, we have taken the decision that we believe this site is no longer viable for us to operate as a pub. We are therefore looking at options including a planning application to potentially turn the site into residential use.

"We have had some local interest for the Bell for alternative use but ultimately insufficient funds were available to follow this through to a successful conclusion."

Last month a car smashed into the front of the pub and the damage had to be boarded up.