LOVERS of real ale could get another venue in Burnley town centre if plans for a Continental-style bar get the go-ahead from planners.

Plans for the bar, which will serve real ale and Belgian and German beers, have been submitted to the council and are expected to be decided next month.

The bar would be developed on the site of the former Shaver Centre shop in Keirby Walk which has been empty for some time.

The man behind the plans is bar manager Simon Scott, 34, of Brockenhurst Road, Burnley, who has worked at the Sparrow Hawk Hotel in Church Street for the past three years.

He said: "We are aiming to create something a bit different from all the other bars and pubs in the town in a continental-style bar serving real ales and Belgian and German beers, rather than the usual fare.

"There's nothing like this in the town at the moment, although bars like this are going to be the next big thing. There are already a couple in Manchester which are doing really well.

"It won't be a noisy bar and there won't be a jukebox or any games machines. Hopefully it will be somewhere people can come and enjoy a quiet drink and conversation."

Simon said he was hoping the bar would form a link in the chain of real ale pubs which run from the Ministry of Ale in Trafalgar Street to the Sparrow Hawk in Church Street.

He said: "The bar will be in a prominent place in the town and hopefully will get a fair bit of passing trade. It's an exciting project and should offer something new."

Burnley Campaign for Real Ale member John Webster said the bar would be a welcome addition to the drinking places in the town.

He added: "I really hope this gets through planning.

"Bars are opening up all over Burnley but there are very few which cater for those who just want a quiet drink of real ale and conversation. It's good news for the town."