Today, The Crown Inn is an award winning, community owned, traditional country pub in South Moreton, Oxfordshire, and we are proud to have been part of their story.
In 2015, the pub had been bought by a developer. The village had been without a shop or a village hall for years, and residents feared they would lose their last place to meet and socialise. After listing the pub as an Asset of Community Value, and incorporating a Community Benefit Society, a community share issue raised £332,350 from 128 investors. This unlocked other finance – grant and loan – enabling the Society to purchase the pub on 27 September 2018.
The team behind the pub are ambassadors for Community Pubs and offer their help and support to other villages in a similar situation. They say, “If your village is facing our situation, remember: brewers and developers depend solely on inertia to get their plans through. If you organise and show you won’t back down, they will back off and move on to easier prey… so FIGHT! Please feel free to contact the SMCBS Committee if you need any help or advice.”
A 500-year-old Inn saved by its residents in 2018 has secured a new funding package enabling the community pub to thrive as it enters a new chapter under new management.
Located in the heart of Ash near Sandwich in Kent, the Chequer Inn is a country pub that has been serving drinks and its community since 1674 welcoming locals, walkers and even four legged friends. The pub received specialist advice and finance from the More Than a Pub programme in 2018 and along with a successful share offer coming in from all around the world – from Alaska to Australia, via North Carolina, Scotland and Yorkshire – the pub was saved by residents and stopped from being developed into housing.
Re-opening in May 2019, the pub encountered some difficult times as the country was plunged into the Covid pandemic and lockdown resulting in the closure of the pub in January 2022. The community and the pub’s society has since rallied together and installed a new tenant responsible for the day-to-day management of the pub. Local businessman Nick Turner-Brown (who manages a number of other successful pubs in the region) has made much needed positive changes including a new and improved food menu as well as service quality the pub can be proud of ensuring long-term growth and a sustainable future for the pub and its residents.
Jane Greaves, Secretary for the Chequer Inn Ash Society said: “This refinancing by Co-operative & Community Finance of the Chequer Inn, Ash, enables us to enter a new phase of community ownership with confidence. We have been impressed by the support we have received from Kevin Lloyd-Evans but above all his genuine interest in the community, the property and our plans for the future of the Chequers. We would urge other communities keen to save their ‘local’ to seek assistance from the Plunkett Foundation.”
Co-operative & Community Finance were pleased to help secure funding for the Chequer Inn as a second loan following on from their ‘More Than a Pub’ legacy scheme in 2019. Kevin Lloyd-Evans, Lending and Relationship Manager at Co-operative & Community Finance said: “We are delighted to be able to support The Chequer Inn Ash Community Pub. We are helping clients with their debt structures to ensure affordability and long-term sustainability. The current challenges within the hospitality sector are well documented. We are supporting the development of the community shares market by listening, consulting and responding to needs. Community ownership and control are at the heart of our mission, values and plans moving forward.”
The legacy ‘More Than a Pub Fund’ scheme provides loan finance of between £75,000 to £150,000 available to Community Owned Pubs at a discounted rate of interest for members of the Plunkett Foundation, length of term ranges from five to twenty years. Co-operative & Community Finance also helps support groups to access grant funding to help them develop business plans and pay for surveys through the Reach Fund. Please contact Co-operative & Community Finance for the full terms and conditions, and to discuss how your Community Owned Pub venture can be supported.
You can find out more about The Chequer Inn pub by visiting their website.
The Chequer Inn Ash Society story can be viewed on www.savethechequerinn.co.uk while the society await a new web site going forward.
Locals look to improve the wellbeing and social glue of the community through the purchasing of their village pub with help from Co-operative & Community Finance’s ‘More Than a Pub’ finance package.
The Prince of Wales pub has served its community for hundreds of years dating back as far as the 17th century.
Located in hamlet of Newtown in St Martin within the Lizard Peninsula of South West Cornwall, The Prince of Wales pub has served its community for hundreds of years dating back as far as the 17th century as the village’s only pub. After closure during the pandemic in 2020, locals have come together to organise the purchase of the pub developing a business that is community driven and provides customers with greater opportunities for connection.
A survey was conducted by residents towards the end of 2020 and following a swell of support from the village for community ownership, ‘Friends of the Newtown St Martin Pub Ltd’ was formed as a Community Benefit Society in February 2021. Along with a community share offer and help from Co-operative & Community Finance’s ‘More Than a Pub’ finance package, the society has been able to obtain the funds necessary for the freehold purchase of the pub as a community asset.
Food, live music, and a family room have been put forward by the community as important elements in the pub’s development. Regular activities such as quiz nights, Young Farmers socials and being used for the local darts team and Euchre club (which lapsed after the pub’s closure) are set to resume. The society also hopes to revive an informal ‘Trades’ evening hosted by the pub which brought together tradespeople across the area one evening a week as well as creating new clubs for gardeners, writers, a book club and cinema club. After identifying individuals in the village with significant caring responsibilities, a carer’s support club is another opportunity to use the pub to bring the community together along with potential plans for a shop within the pub to service the village.
Katie Nightingale, Chairperson of Friends of the Newtown St Martin Pub said: “Whilst this journey has been long and arduous, we simply could not have achieved what we have without the incredible support from Co-operative & Community Finance. The process can be complex at times and the expert advice provided was truly invaluable. Our community is absolutely thrilled at what we have achieved and the re-opening of the pub will make a huge difference to our villages and surrounding areas.”
The Prince of Wales pub, Newtown-in-St-Martin
The loan finance from Co-operative and Community Finance is the very last loan from the original ‘More Than a Pub’ programme, a loan product created specifically to support Community Pubs, alongside a grant from the Plunkett Foundation funded by a Power to Change and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). Co-operative and Community Finance were also able to provide extra finance from their ‘More than a Pub’ legacy fund and the pub group were successful in receiving a grant from the Community Ownership Fund. Tim Coomer, Business Development Manager Co-operative & Community Finance said: “This Pub group have been on quite a journey, and we are ecstatic that their hard work, perseverance, and determination has paid off in the end. The Prince of Wales is in a pretty pub in a beautiful part of the country, but this belies some of the real issues faced in rural Cornwall, where isolation, low wages, second home ownership and high costs of living can make it a challenging place to live for many. The Prince of Wales is a pub at the heart of its community and long may it be a success.”
The legacy ‘More Than a Pub Fund’ provides loan finance of between £75,000 to £150,000 available to Community Owned Pubs at a discounted rate of interest for members of the Plunkett Foundation, length of term ranges from five to twenty years. We can also help support groups access grant funding to help get them develop their business plans and pay for surveys, etc… through the Reach Fund. Please contact Co-operative & Community Finance for the full terms and conditions, and to discuss how your Community Owned Pub venture can be supported.
You can find out more about Friends of Newtown St Martin Pub by visiting their website.
Co-operative & Community Finance’s ‘More Than a Pub’ finance package has helped the residents of Frisby on the Wreake purchase and refurbish The Bell Inn, creating a pub owned and protected for future generations by the community.
As the only remaining pub in Frisby on the Wreake (situated on the Upper Wreake Valley of Leicestershire) owners of The Bell Inn approached local parish councillors when the pub closed its doors in April 2021, due to the lease not being renewed by previous tenants. Following a village meeting exploring the option of purchasing the community asset, ‘The Bell Inn Frisby Community Group’ was quickly formed with surveys being sent to 382 households in the village and wider rural catchment in May 2021.
Local MP Alicia Kearns with Pub Operations manager Steve Hardy and Pub Manager Lucy Jackson & Gordon Jackson
A positive response to the potential purchase from residents led to the formal registration of ‘The Bell Inn Frisby Community Group Limited CBS’ in August 2021 following ongoing community consultation they produced a Community Engagement Plan in the September. It was at this point that the vision, aims, and values of the community pub were established involving becoming a family friendly and inclusive hub for the community, and extending services to include a daytime café, business hub (with Wi-Fi and printing facilities), and installation of an Electric Vehicle charging point.
A community share offer was launched on 11th October 2021 and after a slight extension of the deadline an impressive £302,000 was raised by the community with help from residents within the Melton Borough area as well as investors from across the Midlands, UK and even a some from overseas (including Germany, Hong Kong, Fiji, Australia and the US through previous residents of the village and family members living abroad).
As well as the purchase of the building the new society intends to refurbish and repair the courtyard area, buy outside furniture, and provide working capital for set up and stock for the bar. The Bell Inn intends for the membership and community to have a real say in the future direction and core values of the pub providing positive social impact, promoting inclusion and becoming a ‘hub’ for the community.
Residents with local Vicar David Harknett
Tony Bird, the Chairman of The Bell Inn Frisby Community Group, said “We have achieved so much in such a short space of time, but there is still a great deal to do. We have already erected scaffolding to give the exterior a facelift and the kitchens are undergoing complete renovation with a view to starting food service on Wednesday June 1st.”
Steve Hardy, Pub Operations Manager added, “We also have ambitious plans for the outside area and the conservatory. We debated delaying the opening, but once we’d completed the bar area and revamped the cellar, we just wanted get the doors open and start trading.”
The supportive loan finance from Co-operative and Community Finance comes from their ‘More Than a Pub’ fund, a loan product created specifically to support Community Pubs, as a legacy to the original Power to Change and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) funded project, led by the Plunkett Foundation. Tim Coomer, Business Development Manager Co-operative & Community Finance said: “It’s fantastic to see another community take ownership of such an important village asset. I know the committee are keen to be really involved in the pub alongside a new manager and reject it becoming just a destination pub, by offering a reasonably priced range of products that are accessible to all.”
The ‘More Than a Pub Fund’ provides loan finance of between £75,000 to £150,000 available to Community Owned Pubs at a discounted rate of interest for members of the Plunkett Foundation, length of term ranges from five to twenty years. We can also help support groups access grant funding to help get them develop their business plans and pay for surveys, etc… through the Reach Fund. Please contact Co-operative & Community Finance for the full terms and conditions, and to discuss how your Community Owned Pub venture can be supported.
The community of East Budleigh have come together to purchase and renovate their local pub with the help of Co-operative & Community Finance’s ‘More Than a Pub’ finance package.
The Grade 2 listed Sir Walter Raleigh pub (named after the statesman and explorer born in the village in 1552) situated in the ‘Otter Valley’ East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, has been purchased by locals through an impressive community share offer along with supportive loan finance from Co-operative and Community Finance.
Over £350,000 has been raised in just a matter of months from nearly 300 residents investing in the pub, after the previous owner approached the village to see if the community wished to save this community asset. A Founding Members group was formed and following early advice through the Plunkett Foundation and a positive response from the community, an offer was accepted in late 2021 with the support of the Parish Council. From there a public meeting was held in January 2022 attended by over 200 people who were invited to pledge their support.
As well as the purchase of the building, the funding will also go towards refurbishing the bar and attached accommodation, investing in equipment and stock and provide working capital. The pub intends to employ a manager, chef and at least one other member of staff with the opportunity for local volunteers to contribute also.
The Sir Walter Raleigh aims to encourage locals back and widen their offer to the walkers, cyclists and tourists visiting the area and have already begun exploring the potential to reconfigure the rear of the property adding an extension to open up more space for customers.
The community pub intends to encourage community-led activities and social groups to use the pub, operate a coffee shop in the morning, bring company and community to the old and isolated and encourage families with children to visit. Paul Smith, Vice Chairman said: “Securing the future of the pub is a great achievement for our village. The support from Co-operative and Community Finance has been fantastic, they were helpful, responsive, supportive and very professional in all our dealings. The loan application process was straightforward and the terms of the loan very fair. Opening a current account was a tortuous process, by comparison securing our loan couldn’t have been easier.”
The supportive loan finance from Co-operative and Community Finance is the first to come from their ‘More Than a Pub’ fund, a loan product created specifically to support Community Pubs, as a legacy to the original Power to Change and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) funded project, led by the Plunkett Foundation. Tim Coomer, Business Development Manager Co-operative & Community Finance said: We are delighted to be able to support The Sir Walter Raleigh group, the Pub is the last remaining pub in the village, and it was vital to save it as a Pub for the village and community to enjoy for many years to come. East Budleigh has a good track record in supporting community owned ventures having established a Community Owned shop in 2008, which is highly successful to this day operated by a combination of volunteers and paid management”.
The ‘More Than a Pub Fund’ ’ provides loan finance of between £75,000 to £150,000 available to Community Owned Pubs at a discounted rate of interest for members of the Plunkett Foundation, length of term ranges from five to twenty years. Please contact Co-operative & Community Finance for the full terms and conditions, and to discuss how your Community Owned Pub venture can be supported.
Re-opening in May 2019, the pub encountered some difficult times as the country was plunged into the Covid pandemic and lockdown resulting in the closure of the pub in January 2022. The community and the pub’s society has since rallied together and installed a new tenant responsible for the day-to-day management of the pub. Local businessman Nick Turner-Brown (who manages a number of other successful pubs in the region) has made much needed positive changes including a new and improved food menu as well as service quality the pub can be proud of ensuring long-term growth and a sustainable future for the pub and its residents.
