Breathing life back into George and Dragon

WHEN the doors closed for the last time at the George and Dragon, residents in the tiny Swaledale community of Hudswell could have been forgiven for thinking it was the end of an era.

That view must have been reinforced when workers then moved in to strip out fixtures and fittings from the traditional English pub.

But any doubters had not reckoned on the determination within the village, near Richmond and with a population of 150, to save what had been the hub of the community.

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After months of careful research and painstaking work they hope to have secured enough funding to buy the pub themselves by the end of January, with plans to run it as a village co-operative.

To make the project viable they need to raise around 220,000 and so far have pledges totalling 150,000, with almost half the village's population wanting to put money into the scheme.

Another 40 people, with family links to the village or just an aspiration to own part of a Dales pub, have also put up some cash, with investments ranging between 500 and 5,000.

The aim is to restore the pub as cheaply as possible, with volunteer labour where available, and then to sign up a tenant to run it as conventional business, paying a dividend of 3.5 per cent to shareholders.

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Without the burden of a conventional bank debt, villagers are convinced the business will be viable, and the way the co-operative has been established has prevented big investors stepping in to take control.

Any large profits on the capital of the property would have to be given to charity or used to benefit the village, should the building eventually be sold on.

The co-operative is called the Hudswell Community Pub Ltd and is registered with Financial Services. It has been given a 5,000 grant by the Yorkshire Key Fund, with the offer of a low-interest 20,000 loan if needed to make the deal work.

However, co-operative secretary Martin Booth said they are hoping to raise all the cash they need by the end of January, though that deadline is flexible.

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After that, they will need to find another 30,000 to install a new kitchen and replace fixtures and fittings. A ceiling of 20,000 has been imposed, though anyone putting in that sum would have no greater influence than an investor with 500 to contribute.

Mr Booth said: "The George and Dragon is the only pub in the village and closed in August 2008.

"Last summer, approaching the anniversary, no-one had bought it and some of us got together to ask if we could do anything about it. The pub was the centre of the social life of the village.

"We called a public meeting and about 50 people turned up, which was a great response."

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Even before they have bought the pub, members are already surveying the prospects for phase two: the pub comes with planning permission to build bed and breakfast units in the grounds.

"That would be a key to making it really viable in the long term because there is a shortage of B&Bs in Swaledale and there is nowhere else to eat in the village," said Mr Booth.

"It is a lovely little village and there are great views of the Swale valley from the pub garden.

"It has open fires, nooks and crannies and is a stone building. It fits all the expectations of a traditional pub."

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Co-operative members anticipate summer tourist trade will help to support the pub throughout the year, allowing it to become a focal point for the community again.

A role model in community spirit

Villagers' inspiration for the future of the George and Dragon came from the Old Crown pub in Cumbria, which has been successfully run on the same basis for several years.

It claims to be Britain's first pub co-operative and more than 100 people, mainly local, have a stake in the business.

The Old Crown has had its own micro-brewery since the 1980s and that was taken over by a local co-operative in the late 1990s, then taken on by a second co-operative in 2003. It has also won recognition from the Campaign for Real Ale.

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