A TOWN council is to move venues after nearly 75 years because its current meeting place has no disabled access.

Princes Risborough Town Council is moving to Lincoln House, New Road, at the back of Cross Keys Surgery, as an interim measure.

It has been meeting in Market House, Market Square, since around 1927, after the building was restored as part of the town's war memorial. But the town council is having to move because new legislation means disabled people must have access to meetings and Market House cannot be adapted.

There are further problems with health and safety regulations meaning only 17 people can be at a meeting. With 13 town councillors and two journalists present, this leaves only two members of the public able to go to meetings.

Chairman of the town council John Coombs said the move was temporary for the moment as the meeting place does not include an office for the town clerk, Dennis Phillips, and they wanted to see how the arrangement would work.

He said: "We have not given up the idea of finding our own premises."

The town council set aside £35,000 of this year's budget for its own meeting room and office but was forced to reconsider its position at the annual town meeting.

David Allworth, who resigned as chairman after the meeting, believed that it would be better to own premises rather than renting a meeting place.