A pub 'created for people' tucked away amid Shropshire and Staffordshire countryside

One pub which has taken on the challenge of becoming a full community pub is the Bell Inn in Tong, east of Shifnal.

The pub is located just under a mile away from Junction 3 of the M54 and sits in splendid isolation on the A41 Newport Road next to a petrol station and surrounded by the Shropshire and South Staffordshire countryside on all sides.

It's housed in a distinctive two-tiered brick building which was built in 1811 on the site of the medieval turnpike buttercross, now marked by an 18th century obelisk.

Inside, the pub boasts a warm and friendly atmosphere, with a bar area and restaurant which also features alcoves and a conservatory which is used for events and is available for private hire.

Owned and run by Marston's, it is currently managed by Cleo Potts, who moved into the area with her family in July after interviewing for a job with Marston's near her home in Rocester in Kent and, in her own words, falling in love with the Bell when shown what it looked like.

She said: "I applied for a job with Marston's to work at another pub and during the interview process, they asked me if I would be interested in a different pub, then showed me photos of the Bell Inn and I took the job straight away.

"I just found Shropshire to be absolutely stunning and when I was offered the role and we came and visited, I just felt the warmth of the local community and found that the pub was absolutely stunning.

"It looked and felt like somewhere I could create some magic and it was a great challenge to be able to do it."

Ms Potts said that the location of the pub did bring some challenges, being fairly remote, but said there was still so much potential for it as a community hub.

She said: "It's had its challenges in the past and is remote, but I think that with advertising and a team that loves the pub and the restaurant, I think that where we are now to where we're doing is going to be a journey of love and endeavour, but with success at the end of it.

"We've got a great and regular customers base and I think that the pub needs to be about the community, not just the restaurant, so I have a vision for this place which is about being a community pub where everyone is invited.

"It was created for people and I want a place where you can come in and get warm by the fire, the community gets together and you make new friends, have new conversations and it becomes a proper community hub."

The pub is dry-led, boasting an impressive food menu full of pub classics like fish and chips, hunter's chicken and homemade kebabs, with Ms Potts saying the chicken and chorizo was her favourite.

Being a Marston's pub, the drink selection is one which follows the brewery's line, with Pedigree and Wainwright's on the hand pulls, as well as a large range of premium lagers, ciders and a big selection of spirits on offer.

Ms Potts said the Bell Inn was a place where everyone could enjoy a warm welcome, with dogs especially welcome, and that it had become her life and made her and her family very happy.

She said: "Coming here has changed the lives of myself and my family as we've gained a much bigger one from the team here and the whole community as the people who work here are very special.

"Moving from Kent to Shropshire was a big move to say the least as we were in the garden of England, but we've been made to feel so welcome here and embrace the warmth of the people in the community.

"I'd never been to Shropshire before and I just fell in love with it as I love the little villages and there's no long traffic queues and it's just a quieter life, so it's a great place to live and my pub is a wonderful place to work and live."