Cheers! Incredible turnaround for community Shropshire pub

But after being closed for eight years it reopened as a community asset, and today it is a national frontrunner.

The Pheasant at Neenton closed as a pub in 2006 when the landlord and landlady retired and decided to live upstairs.

But when in 2009 the landlord died and a water leak made the building uninhabitable, the former focus of the community soon turned derelict.

A group that would eventually become the Neenton Community Society began looking into the possible avenues of rescuing the well-loved institution.

Working with Shropshire Council and the Shropshire Housing Group, the society took the ambitious step of building seven houses in the village, and subsequently got a £450,000 grant to refurbish the Pheasant. Building started in early 2014, and the doors opened up again in November of that year after eight years.

Since then the team that runs the pub, alongside the Neenton Community Society, has re-established the Pheasant as a hub for the village community.

John Pickup, chair of the society, said: "It was a complete refurbishment, we more or less had to rebuild everything.

"Most of the floors stayed but the staircases were out, rooms had to be changed, we built on a big oak frame which gave us the basis for our primary dining room.

"That room is also used as a community room for events. We put three new guest bedrooms in and got advice from experts on how we should manage and run the pub.

"It took 850,000 pounds in total to complete the whole project, and we only had 10 per cent in grants.

"We had a community share project where people bought shares in the company, and some individuals in the community lent significant sums of money.

"We're all incredibly proud about the work we've done, but it has been incredibly hard work. Now we look to the future to keep progressing how we have done so far."

The future already looks bright for the Pheasant at Neenton, with its success in re-building its customer base reflected in a place on the shortlist of the Great British Pub Awards.

The Pheasant has made it through two rounds of judging to be chosen as a national finalist in the Community Pub category.

The final awards will be presented at a gala black-tie dinner in London in September after the judges have visited each shortlisted pub over the next month.

John explained the appeal and the ambition.

Reputation

He said: "In terms of tourism it's very well placed and we couldn't ask for any more. We're 20 minutes from Ludlow which is recognised for its food culture.

"Mark is a terrific chef and Sarah does a great job. We're trying to span for quite a range for people who want top end dining, and at the same time we want to be a local for local people and have some craic with the farmers in the evening for example.

"Half of our customers drive over 10 miles to get to us which is terrific. We aim to have the best food in Shropshire and it's all about building the reputation and getting into the right guides, and now getting to the finals of the awards is important both in terms of progress we're making but equally getting our name out there even more."

Peter Holbrook, chief executive of Social Enterprise UK, said: “The Pheasant is an exceptional pub, its atmosphere is welcoming, the rooms are wonderfully comfortable and clean. The food is sublime, nothing short of what you might find in the very best restaurants of any major city.

"This would be an amazing achievement for any hostelry, but knowing that this is driven and owned by the community makes a visit to The Pheasant even sweeter."