WOODSTOCK residents are urging the town council to protect local businesses following an application to allow a physiotherapy clinic to be set up in the town hall.

The application has been put in by Lisbeth Nesbitt, who runs the Woodstock and Charlbury Physiotherapy company and, although the application involves no changes to the building, retailers and residents said they would prefer to see the town hall used as a shop.

Resident Hannah Keyser, from Park Street, said she wanted to see the town council to step up and protect local businesses in order to cater for the younger community.

She said: "Since we moved to the area eight years ago we have watched, with great sadness, the slow decay of the town centre.

"The time has come now for the council to use all its powers to fight to save it and key sites in the centre must remain retail spaces.

"We need to see more cafes, and a greater variety of shops and for Woodstock to be a centre for high-quality shopping with interesting and modern places to eat and drink.

"There are a lot of young, affluent people in the area who need to be catered for."

The town hall, in the Market Place, currently holds community and retail events and residents said they were not happy to lose this function of the building.

Aleksandra Sopilnik, who previously owned a creperie in Woodstock, said she did not agree with changing the use of the building.

She said: "In my opinion it is not right to change the use of the outlet, simply because there is a lack of retail shops in Woodstock where small independent businesses like myself will not have a chance to trade in Woodstock."

Jane Hatfield, from Flemings Road, said while she thought a physiotherapy clinic would be valuable to the area, she did not think it was the right location as it would be at the cost of a local retailer.

She said: "I have lived in Woodstock for 20 years and have seen the reduction in retail outlets including shops and cafes.

"As these premises have reduced this is having an adverse impact on the town and makes it less of a destination for locals and visitors.

"A physiotherapy clinic whilst valuable in its own right does not need to be located in a high street location and result in the loss of yet another shop or cafe.

"The town council as landlords should support and encourage retailers not remove premises from such use."

But in a letter supporting the application, the local authority said letting the hall as a shop had proved "unsuccessful and the location of the property is better suited to a business that does not rely wholly on footfall within Woodstock".

It added: "Mrs Nesbitt has an existing client base and we feel she would prove to be more successful in the property than a retail business."

The application, recommended for refusal, will be discussed by West Oxfordshire District Council at a meeting today at the council offices in Witney at 2pm.

Woodstock Town Hall was built in 1766 and designed by the famous architect Sir William Chambers.

Ms Nesbitt was unavailable for comment.