Villagers club together to buy their local pub
PEOPLE in villages across the rural West are missing meeting up for a chat – and a pint – in their local pub.
And those living in one Wiltshire village are so keen to ensure that their local is still there once lockdown is lifted they are clubbing together to buy it.
Campaigners in Ogbourne St Andrew, which is a couple of miles north of the market town of Marlborough, hope to buy the Silks on the Downs.
The pub hasn’t opened since the start of the pandemic and residents fear losing something which has been part of their community for considerably more than 100 years.
They are today launching a share issue for people to buy a stake in the pub and meet their target of £240,000 to buy it.
Ultimately they would like to raise up to £500,000 so they can fully renovate it.
The pub – known locally as The Silks – is in the heart of Wiltshire racing country on the Marlborough Downs, with leading National Hunt trainers Emma Lavelle and Neil King being based nearby.
Stuart Williamson, chair of the Ogbourne Community Pub Society, said: “The Silks on the Downs is so much more than a pub.
“It’s been bringing people from near and far together for well over 100 years and we’d like to keep it that way. But we really can’t do this alone. We are inviting as many people as possible to support our cause by buying shares and helping us to create a thriving community hub for the benefit of all.”
The pub dates back to the mid-19th century and was initially named The Wheatsheaf.
A former tenant was former Swindon Town goalkeeper Fraser Digby.
Members of the community and public will, from today until May 31, be offered the chance to part own the pub by purchasing community shares in the pub starting from £200.
The Community Share Offer is being launched by the Ogbourne Community Pub Society formed by a group of local volunteers, passionate about the role that a village pub can play in helping to create a thriving community as well as ensuring its future for
It’s been bringing people from near and far together for well over 100 years and we’d like to keep it that way STUART WILLIAMSON