Historic Cinderford Golden Lion pub to reopen after refurbishment

Bosses at a Forest of Dean pub have pledged to reopen more than a year after it last closed its doors.

Luke Carroll, operational manager of Valiant Pub Company, said they have renovated the Golden Lion in Cinderford for the community.

Improvements to the beer garden, a new kitchen, signs, furniture and inside redecoration are all on the list.

He said: "We look for pubs that are community oriented."

"We love investing in towns that maybe haven't seen investment for quite some time. We've got about 69 pubs now. And this is the next one. It's due to open in February and there is lots of work to be done."

It should provide 12 jobs and will also be a live music venue and community hub.

"There will a full interior and exterior refurbishment," said Mr Carroll.

"The beer garden is going to be stripped back and made a really pleasant pace to sit in the summer. We want to kind-of give it that premium feel. We will be offering food, good value drinks and make it a family-oriented pub.

"The goal is to make it a community hub that is kind of a safe space for everybody. There's quite a lot of pubs that aren't currently open in the Forest of Dean. So what we want to do is just bring a place where everyone feels welcome."

The pub, which was previously named the best cider pub in Gloucestershire for five years running, was named the Golden Lion in 1868 and has a distinctive large lion statue at the front of the pub.

In 1968, records show a local beat-the-record of drinking beer from the German-equivalent of a yard-of-ale - which is a glass boot containing three-and-a-half pints - in an astonishing 45 seconds.

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