White Lion in Broadwindsor saved after community raise £36k

A group of villagers have raised the cash in order to take over The White Lion in Broadwindsor, following last year's departure of the 17th century pub's landlord.

Over the years the village has seen the four venues - The Cross Keys, The Oak, The Butchers Arms and The George Inn - all close and turned into residential use.

READ MORE: Campaign to save White Lion, Broadwindsor

David Leader (front, centre), chairman of White Lion Steering Group with villagers outside the pub in Back Lane, Broadwindsor. Picture: Graham Hunt/BNPS

Owners Palmers Brewery decided against reopening it as it had struggled to make a profit and approached the villagers to see if they wanted to take it on as a community enterprise.

Now they have achieved their fundraising goal, Broadwindsor Community Pub Ltd will take over the tenancy of the pub and refurbish it.

Spokeswoman from the pub, Margery Hookings said: "Meeting the target will enable the group to refurbish the pub inside, kit out the kitchen and provide some working capital.

"The figure now stands at around £36,000, so the extra money will help with additional working capital and give the team a good start on sprucing up the courtyard garden in time for the summer season."

The White Lion pub with its new signs. Picture: Graham Hunt/BNPS

David Leader, chairman of the White Lion Steering Group, said: "It’s fantastic news – a real testament to the power of a close-knit, caring community where good things happen.

"If all goes according to plan, we hope to open the doors of The White Lion well in time for Easter.

"We're so grateful to everyone who has contributed. Thanks to them, our community pub is going to be something very special.

"It’s exciting to think that the White Lion doors will be opening again soon but this time as a community pub, run by the community for the community.

"The local community and wider community have rallied around magnificently to get us to where we are.

"We knew there was a lot of support for the pub as we surveyed all 600 homes in Broadwindsor in the summer and there was nearly 100 per cent support for it.

"The majority of donations were by ordinary people and we had a few from further afield.

"If we get more donations it means there are more things we can do the pub that we didn't originally cost, to the courtyard and so on.

"It's a 17th century pub so there's a lot to do to it."

The people of Broadwindsor, that has a population of 700, have already saved the village shop from closing after taking that over as a community project that now turns over £250,000 a year.

Mr Leader added: "The White Lion is a fantastic hub for the village, it's been there for hundreds of years.

"We used to have five pubs in the village, but the others have all been closed and turned into residential properties over the years.

"The last one closed about 20 years ago.

"The White Lion is the last remaining pub.

"Broadwindsor isn't a wealthy village full of million pound houses but there's a good mix of people from different walks of life and it has a great sense of community.

"The village shop closed a few years ago and residents got behind that to open as a community shop. That works really well and turns over £250,000."

Broadwindsor is in the heart of Thomas Hardy country and has a claim to fame that King Charles II stayed there when he was fleeing Parliamentarian soldiers in 1651 before he escaped to France.

The Cross Keys, The Oak and The Butchers Arms are all residential homes now and The George Inn, which is rumoured to be where Charles II stayed when it was called Castle Inn, is a B&B.

The community group will have to pay the brewery a monthly rent based on a percentage of their turnover once the business has reopened.