People power sees pints pulled in Cleeve Prior
PEOPLE power in Cleeve Prior has led to the village pub reopening months ahead of schedule.
Villagers are battling to keep their beloved pub open and are have a lunched a campaign to raise enough money to buy it.
Thanks to the efforts of residents in Cleeve Prior to buy the Kings the early reopening is seen as a big boost to the community’s chances of actually achieving their goal but there’s still a lot to be done.
Villagers trying to save the 500-year-old pub formed Cleeve Prior Community Pub Limited, a Community Benefit Society registered with the Financial Conduct Authority, in a bid to save the pub from permanent closure, when it shut its doors last year.
This Society is now working in collaboration with licensee Dave Lewis, ahead of a Community Share Offer which will was launched on 27th April.
Residents and the wider public are being invited to invest in history by buying shares in the society, with a target of at least £200,000, which will sit alongside grant monies to enable the pub to be bought and sensitively refurbished.
Brian Williams, chair of the society, said: “This target may seem daunting, but well over half of this amount has already been pledged and it is in line with successful campaigns of other community owned pubs in the region, such as the Queen Elizabeth in Elmley Castle, the Fox at Loxley and the New Inn in Norton Lindsey.”
Grants have already been secured from the Architectural Heritage Fund and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, and a decision is expected shortly from the UK Government Department of Levelling-Up, on an application to the Community Ownership Fund, which has the support of local MP Nigel Huddlestone.
“Reopening the pub, with special events such as regular jazz nights, cow nights on a Monday and curry nights on a Thursday while we market and sell shares, underlines our belief that the Kings Arms, Cleeve Prior is a viable proposition, and by collaborating with Dave we can ensure a seamless transition to a community owned pub, when the time comes,” said Brian.
A public meeting is to be held at the Cleeve Prior Memorial Hall on Saturday 11th May at 2pm to present the share opportunity and answer any questions.
More information about the share offer can be found on this link https://www.cleevepriorcommunitypub.co.uk/docs/share-document.pdf
