Committee members in charge of a community-owned pub say they will look to find new tenant as soon as possible after the current landlords decided to terminate their tenancy.
Mark and Michelle Firby announced on Friday they would be leaving the award-winning George and Dragon in Hudswell from August 31.
The board of Hudswell Community Pub Ltd have issued a statement following the news.
The board say they were “extremely grateful for the hard work that Mark and Michelle Firby and their team of staff have put into running the George and Dragon over the last year”.
They added: “Clearly the well-publicised dramatic increases in the cost of energy and food and drink supplies have made their task very hard.
“The HCP management board will meet on Monday 14th August to decide how to react to this news.
“We will make every effort to minimise disruption and keep the pub open.
“We will look to appoint a new tenant as quickly as possible and will of course keep all our members and supporters informed of how we are proceeding with securing the future of the George and Dragon.”
The board said that tn the short term its members and villagers would rally round to keep the pub open, “or if it has to close then this will be for as short a period as possible”.
They added: “”We have already had offers from volunteers to work behind the bar and the current staff are keen to stay on.”
If anyone is interested in taking on the tenancy of the pub, contact the HCP secretary Martin Booth by email at martintbooth1@hotmail.com
