The White Swan in Gressenhall, Norfolk, has opened a community space called The Stables, a refurbished outbuilding.
It can be used as a community café, pop-up cinema, and meeting room for local groups, with the aim to serve takeaway food in the near future.
The White Swan is owned by the local community who purchased the pub in 2019. The Stables was opened with help and a Community Services Fund grant from Pub is The Hub, the not-for-profit organisation.
Alex Begg, chair of the Gressenhall Community Enterprise, said: “This new space will help bring people together. It means we will be able to host more groups, such as Knit and Natter, and have space for meetings. It will also play a key role in keeping people in the village connected to help combat social isolation.”
Daniel Pratt, managing director of White Swan Gressenhall Ltd, which runs the pub on behalf of the community group, said: “As the business grows and develops its customer base over the next few months, we are excited to start using The Stables for more community-led events.
“Pubs are vital to local communities like Gressenhall and we have enjoyed being part of the journey to get The White Swan open again, even if our contribution of running the day to day pales into insignificance [compared to] that of the community over the last few years.”
Pub is The Hub regional advisor, Terry Stork, added: “The White Swan is at the heart of this village offering a place for people to get together. It is a great example of a pub supporting people in the local community.”
The pub was also able to utilise a grant from Norfolk Community Foundation to help with the development.
