Jobs boost as hotel work starts

At least 40 jobs will be created when a 20-bedroom hotel is built in Shropshire. Work has begun at the Bridgewater Arms in Harmer Hill, near Shrewsbury.

The new Premier Inn, costing hundreds of thousands of pounds, will be joined to the pub and have 20 en-suite rooms available and a reception area.

At least 20 new jobs in the hotel are expected to be created when it is completed next February providing a welcome boost to the area's economy.

Managers at the Bridgewater Arms are also looking for about 20 new staff.

The move comes after a £400,000 refurbishment boosted the business.

Manager Mark Pritchard said the pub was closed for a month in August in order to allow the inside of the building to be gutted and redesigned.

Mr Pritchard also confirmed that building work on the new inn had already begun after planning permission was received weeks ago.

"The pub is more contemporary now and we offer a more personal dining experience; sometimes you're sitting on top of someone you don't even know but it is more individual now, and there are lots of little nooks and crannies," he said.

"We are also family friendly, so children are welcome to come and have a meal with their parents," he said.

Mr Pritchard added the pub had been visited by a couple of stars when two Coronation Street actors came in for a meal.

"The actors who played Tyrone and Katie in Coronation Street came in, but we moved them to one of our personal dining rooms because they were being recognised," he said.