Pub reopens after £30k facelift
And new owners hope you pop in
A VILLAGE pub is hoping to tempt punters back after undergoing a £30,000 revamp.
The Bush, in High Lane, Brown Edge, is owned by Peter Turner and Nigel Owen, who have given it a fresh lick of paint and installed new log burners, flooring and furniture – with the help from local tradespeople.
The men have turned the watering hole into a Community Interest Company, which means any profit made will be put straight back into the pub for the benefit of the community.
Nigel said: “We’ve had to close for six weeks to do the renovations.
“We’ve had retired joiners, plasterers and tilers from the village, and lots of local folk have come out of retirement and have been helping too.
“Almost everything in here is new, including the beer lines and windows.”
Peter added: “We bought The Bush 12 months ago and we’ve spent around £30,000 on doing it up. We’re waiting to get the kitchen upgraded and our staff trained before we can serve food, which will be in about six weeks.
“We’re not competing with the Top Pub because the owner, Danny Fair, is a brilliant chef and he serves amazing food, whereas ours will be basic pub grub and snacks.
“People can come in for a coffee and enjoy a hot drink, they don’t have to drink alcohol.
“So far we’ve been busy. We make sure everyone gets a warm welcome and we speak to everyone to get to know them.
“We’ve got an advantage with being in the heart of the village and a community pub. It was threatened with closure 10 years or more ago, but two lads from the village persuaded the owner to let them have a lease, and they kept it going but they couldn’t invest, so we’re in a position where we could buy the pub and invest in it.
“The place was damp, mouldy and tired. The bar has always been well supported, but the lounge side struggled.
“We’ve got log fires in both rooms now so it won’t be as cold.
“The Bush can be traced back to 1692, it was a coaching inn.
“That’s the first map book it’s in and this road used to be the only road to Leek.
“We’ve also put tributes in the pub to customers who drank here for years but have died, just to show they’re never forgotten.
“We’ve also got a darts team and a pool team, with a brand new darts board and pool table. There’s also a lovely beer garden and the park next door, and we’re working with the council to get public toilets in the village too.”
The Bush is open Monday to Thursday from 4pm to 11pm, and from midday to midnight on Fridays to Sundays.