A £1m campaign to resurrect the Packhorse Public House in South Stoke has brought the village together, with ‘the biggest community pub buy-back project in British history’ as supporters hope it will inspire others, the Guardian reports.
image Guardian website
The Guardian writes:
The Packhorse in the village of South Stoke, just south of Bath, was never a smart pub but it was friendly, welcoming and earthy, beloved of locals and visitors alike…
But in 2012 the pub was shut and, like so many, earmarked for housing. ‘It was a terrible blow,’ said villager Jenny John. ‘Our sense of community suffered. There’s a church and village hall but not everyone goes to those. The Packhorse was the only place where everyone went, where you got to meet your neighbours regularly. The loss to the village was huge.’…
… Determined to hang on to a vital community resource, they hatched an action plan to save it. Over the last six years, 450 shareholders have clubbed together to put in more than £1m to buy and refurbish the pub. ‘It evolved into the biggest community pub buy-back project in British history,’ said Dom Moorhouse, project lead of the Save the Packhorse team…
.. People – from accountants to lawyers, from gardeners to craftspeople – donated their skills and time. Some hidden treasures were uncovered, including a 17th-century fireplace. The team appealed for help in restoring it, and an expert from France popped over to lend a hand.
… the vision is clear – to ‘re-establish the Packhorse pub as a community-owned, commercially viable, social amenity that we can all enjoy and be proud of’. The idea is not to offer ‘earnest, formal, high service’ but to put a smile on visitors’ faces.
