Community acquires village pub after raising £440,000

The inhabitants of a village are celebrating having taken possession of the keys to their sole remaining pub, which they secured by raising £440,000 to prevent its closure. The Ickleton Lion, situated between Cambridge and Saffron Walden in Essex, commenced operations as a public house in 1728. However, it was listed for sale in 2023 by Greene King, a major brewing company based in Suffolk. In response, the Ickleton Lionhearted group established a community benefit society with the aim of acquiring the establishment within their village. Following a 10-week fundraising period, the group received the keys on Friday. They are now set to commence renovations and repairs, with an anticipated reopening in mid-2025. The funds for the community group were amassed through contributions from 415 shareholders, a sum that incorporated £52,300 provided by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority in collaboration with the charity Plunkett UK. Historically, the pub served as a frequented spot for US airmen during World War Two. More recently, it catered to scientists from the Wellcome Genome Campus and cyclists traversing Route 11. Chulyal White, a resident near Ickleton for five years, recalled a time when The Lion represented the “heart and soul” of the village. Ms White, who visited the pub on Sunday for an initial inspection, stated: “We were shocked to hear that it was closing but now it’s reopening, we’re looking forward to more good times here.” She added: “We’re all looking to see how we can help.” Rachel Radford, who chairs the community group, commented that upon The Lion’s reopening, patrons would discover “a cosy, warm, welcoming pub serving good drinks and good food – relatively simple food – but good pub food, and a fantastic welcome”. She further elaborated: “Anybody will feel comfortable walking in here – whether they’re on their own – because we’ve got a quarter of the people living in the village who do live on their own and we want it to be somewhere where they just feel comfortable coming in, and somebody will say hello to them.” Pippa Heylings, the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for South Cambridgeshire, attended the Sunday gathering and celebration. She remarked: “We’ve just got to do everything we can to make sure communities can be together around special community hubs like this.” The fundraising initiative was characterized by her as “just incredible”. Patrick Watson, an Ickleton resident and project manager who has volunteered to supervise The Lion’s repairs and refurbishment, stated: “It’s great to end 2024 on a high with such a festive celebration, but we have a long wish list for Father Christmas this year.” He added: “The building survey has highlighted urgent repairs needed to the roof and we need a new kitchen too.” Watson further commented: “Luckily, the community is delivering once again and we’ve had over 100 offers of free support from local people and tradespeople to get us to our first opening night in the pub rather than the car park.”