A unique Cotswold Georgian tearoom which set out to offer the chance to step back in time for an authentic 1800s dining experience is making a very modern bid to adapt - by adding AirBnB-style accommodation.

Built in 1803, the family-run Georgian Tearoom, in Rowcroft, is tucked beneath Stroud's railway station. The business was launched in 2018 by owner Varese Ferrao, but has been the subject of local speculation after a news report in September this year that the business's future was "uncertain".

Visiting the premises in 2019, the review website tearooms.co.uk said:: "it aims to be an authentic Georgian experience, with the staff - a 'housekeeper' (actually the proprietor) and 'butler' - dressed in period costume, recipes from the period and decor to match."

Reviews across online media praise the business initiative for its service, food and decor.

In its own website,  the tearooms says that its butler, Mr Richard Sharpe, is "a former Lieutenant Colonel of the Military. During the Battle of Waterloo he was shot in the knee which earned him an honourable discharge".

Ms Ferrao, who serves visitors in costume, has now asked Stroud District Council for permission to adapt the ground floor of the building, which was a solicitors from the 1960s to 2016. Details show the furthest of the two tea rooms from the front of the building, currently used to serve visitors, would be converted into a room with a double bed and a roll-top bath.

She told Punchline-Gloucester.com: "I have had to close temporarily because of a hand injury which needs an operation in January - and I can't afford £40,000 for a chef!"

If planners agree to the request, Ms Ferrao said it will allow her retail offer to adapt to changing market demands: "Most of our visitors come from outside Stroud, but after Covid we have found that we can't get the international customers. Londoners who come here ask if they can stay, and we hope that if overnight bookings become possible, the idea of a Georgian sleepover - but crucially with modern plumbing! - will ensure people coming to Stroud spend more time here."

In further plans for the business, which employs three people in total, she added that tea room visits would be changed to a bookings system, making the provision of staff coverage more efficient.

"It's a wonderful building with a rich history going back to Georgian times and we hope that a small contribution like this will help to raise the town's tourism profile."