The Heath Hotel at Dibden Purlieu is open as a Wetherspoon. Councillors capped alcohol sales at 12.30am every night, not the 1am asked for, after 43 objections.

The Heath Hotel at Dibden Purlieu has reopened as a Wetherspoon, and it will stop selling alcohol at 12.30am every night. The company had asked for 1am from Thursday to Saturday. It offered the earlier time at the licensing hearing, after 43 members of the public objected.

New Forest District Council’s Licensing Sub-Committee granted the new premises licence on 1 September. The draft minutes were published on 7 September. Wetherspoon’s new openings page now lists the pub as “OPEN NOW”.

The pub is on Beaulieu Road (the A326) at the Dibden Purlieu roundabout, opposite Beaulieu Heath. It kept its name.

What the licence allows

The Heath Hotel, Dibden Purlieu: last alcohol sale times compared A bar chart of last alcohol sale times. Wetherspoon's application asked for 1am on Thursday to Saturday and 12.30am on Sunday to Wednesday. The ward councillors asked for midnight every night. The previous licence, granted in 2005, allowed 12.30am. The sub-committee granted 12.30am every night. Last orders at The Heath: 12.30am every night Last alcohol sale time, from the Licensing Sub-Committee hearing on 1 September 2026 10pm 11pm Midnight 1am Asked for, Thursday to Saturday 1am Asked for, Sunday to Wednesday 12.30am Ward councillors asked for Midnight Previous licence (2005) 12.30am Granted, every night 12.30am Source: New Forest District Council, officer report and draft minutes, Licensing Sub-Committee, 1 September 2026. Bank holiday and festive extensions not shown. Graphic by New Forest Daily
The sub-committee settled on the same 12.30am cut-off as the pub's old licence. Graphic by New Forest Daily.

The licence granted on 1 September allows:

  • alcohol sales, on and off the premises, from 8am to 12.30am, Monday to Sunday
  • late-night hot food and drink from 11pm to 12.30am, indoors and outdoors
  • opening to the public from 7am to 1am, Monday to Sunday
  • an extra hour on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, Maundy Thursday, St Patrick’s Day, New Year’s Eve and Sundays before a bank holiday Monday

There is no regulated entertainment on the licence, so no live or recorded music is licensed.

Wetherspoon’s page for the pub currently shows it closing at midnight from Sunday to Thursday and at 1am on Friday and Saturday. The licence would let it stay open until 1am on any night.

Councillors also added two conditions. The pub must run Challenge 25 rather than the Challenge 21 policy the company offered. Staff must also make regular checks outside for noise from the pub or its customers, and keep a log that the police or the council can inspect on demand.

Why so many people objected

The council received 46 representations in the 28-day consultation, according to the officer report:

  • 43 objections from members of the public
  • 2 from district councillors
  • 1 in support

Of the objections, 38 were on public nuisance grounds and 5 on crime and disorder. No responsible authority objected. That list included NFDC planning, the National Park Authority, Hampshire police and Environmental Health.

At the hearing, the objectors made a point of welcoming the reopening itself. The dispute was the hours. The two ward councillors for Dibden and Dibden Purlieu, Cllr Malcolm Wade and Cllr Stephanie Osborne, both asked for midnight every night.

Cllr Wade told the sub-committee the pub sits on a peninsula, between Southampton Water on one side and the A326 and the National Park on the other. He said:

  • there is no evening public transport
  • walking home after dark is hard, with poor lighting and few pavements on the lanes
  • a later licence could draw drinkers from pubs that close earlier
  • local policing is thin
  • elderly people live close by, at the Heathlands residential home

A resident at the hearing said this was a quiet village, where most licensed premises close earlier, some at 11pm. He was worried about late drinkers who were not eating, and about litter in the countryside. Other residents present agreed with the points made.

What Wetherspoon promised

The company’s head of legal and its area manager told the hearing that:

  • about £1.5 million has been spent on the refurbishment, with the layout largely unchanged and no seating removed
  • the company expects 75% of alcohol sales to go with food, and sees the pub as a family food destination
  • the manager of the Lymington Wetherspoon will also run The Heath
  • it will no longer be a hotel; the upstairs rooms are likely to become staff accommodation and a staff room
  • there will be one screen showing terrestrial TV only, no big screens and no music
  • door staff will be used for the first one to two weeks, then on a risk basis
  • there are 35 to 40 parking spaces, with no plans to cut them or enlarge the beer garden
  • when the beer garden closes will be decided once the pub has been trading for a while

The company also agreed to give residents a direct phone number and email for the pub. It will hold an open residents’ meeting within four to six weeks of opening. The area manager said he had already met the Heathlands residential home.

What the sub-committee decided, and why

Councillors accepted 12.30am as “a reasonable adjustment”. They brought the late-night refreshment and opening hours into line with it. The minutes say the decision relied on the company’s willingness to manage noise, its signage and staff training, and the promised residents’ meeting.

They also said lighting, pavements, roads and parking fall outside the Licensing Act. However real those concerns are, the sub-committee could not use them to set conditions.

The officer report records the pub’s history. It is over 100 years old and was part of Whitbread’s estate until JD Wetherspoon bought it in June 2026. The old licence, first granted in 2005, already allowed alcohol until 12.30am. It was transferred to Wetherspoon on 22 July, and the company said it would surrender it once the new one was granted.

What it means for you

If you live near the roundabout, ask the pub for its direct phone number and email. The company committed at the hearing to give them to anyone who asks. Watch for the residents’ meeting, due within four to six weeks of opening.

If late-night noise becomes a problem, the pub is required to check and log noise outside. You can ask the council’s licensing team whether those checks are being kept. Anyone with evidence that the licensing objectives are being undermined can ask for the licence to be reviewed. The minutes say this is available to “any person”.

If you plan to drive, parking on site is 35 to 40 spaces. The company accepted at the hearing that Forestry England’s new car park charges may push more cars onto its site. Our New Forest parking guide has the forest and council tariffs.

An appeal is open only to the company and to those who made representations, to the Magistrates’ Court within 21 days of being notified. The decision stands while any appeal is heard.

Frequently asked questions

Is The Heath at Dibden Purlieu open?

Yes. Wetherspoon’s new openings page lists The Heath Hotel, Beaulieu Road, Dibden Purlieu SO45 4PW, as “OPEN NOW”.

What time does the Dibden Purlieu Wetherspoon stop serving?

The licence allows alcohol sales until 12.30am every night, with an extra hour on certain holidays. The pub may be open to the public until 1am.

Is it still a hotel?

No. The company told the hearing it would not be used as a hotel, as it had been in the past. The upstairs rooms are likely to become staff accommodation and a staff room.

How many people objected?

The council received 46 representations: 43 objections from the public, 2 from district councillors and 1 in support. No responsible authority objected.

Sources