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Group try to raise £450k to buy area's last pub

Clara Bullock
BBC News, Somerset
East Wells Community Benefit Society Five people are standing outside an empty pub holding up signs which call for the pub to be saved. The pub is fairly old, with shuttered windows and white rendering. A traditional sign reads 'The Britannia'. The group are all smiling at the camera and their signs say things like 'Do your Brit For Wells' and 'Make The Brit Great Again'.East Wells Community Benefit Society
The group wants to raise £450,000 to buy and renovate the pub in east Wells

A community group hopes to buy, renovate and reopen the only pub left in their neighbourhood.

The Britannia Inn, in east Wells, closed in June 2021 when landlords Rob and Karen Rouse retired after 35 years behind the bar.

It is up for sale for £300,000 and a group of residents have founded the East Wells Community Benefit Society. They will now sell shares in the society to try to raise funds to buy the pub.

"If the pub goes, if it gets knocked down and turned into houses, we're not getting another pub to serve east Wells," said Theo Butt Philip, who is part of the group.

Mr Butt Philip said the pub was "really important" for the area and a "community asset" before the pandemic.

"Our vision is to turn it into a community pub/hub. It will be available for more than just drinking in the evening," he added.

East Wells Community Benefit Society A view of the empty Britannia Inn in Wells. It is a white building with a black sign above the door saying The Britannia Inn. There is a for sale sign on the wall.East Wells Community Benefit Society

People are being invited to buy shares at an event later, with the group hoping to raise £450,000 to cover the cost of buying the pub and renovating it.

"I think it's within reach," Mr Butt Philip said.

People can buy shares from St Thomas' Church Hall between 14:00 BST and 18:00.

"Each share is £1, but the minimum shareholding is £50," Mr Butt Philip explained. "We want to make sure as many people as possible can be part of this.

"However big or small your shareholding is, you'll have an equal say in the running of the society."

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