SaveThe Storey Arms
Osgathorpe
Aiming to save the Storey Arms and be the first community owned pub in Leicestershire
The Pub
The Storey Arms is a free house, serving the community for almost 200 years. It is on the junction of Main Street and Meadow Lane, in a prime village location. The current landlord and his family have run the pub for the last 20 years, and have put their lives and souls into it. However the time has come for them to retire and take a well-earned rest. With 26 pubs closing in the UK every week, there is little chance that a new Licensee Landlord will come forward, so our only option to keep the pub open is for the community to purchase the pub and appoint a new and experienced tenant Landlord.
A recent village survey has demonstrated that 98% of the residents want to keep the pub open. The aim is to not only keep the pub open but to expand the range of services to include potentially:
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Shop
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Parcel drop/pick-up
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Prescription pick-up
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Meeting room
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Playgroup
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Coffee Shop
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WiFi
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Lunch Club
The Plan
We think The Storey Arms should
be owned and run as a community
venture, functioning not only as a
financially viable and welcoming
pub, but also as a centre for other
village based initiatives and
services, including a shop, parcel
drop and meeting room. This is our
chance to keep The Storey Arms at
the heart of village life and ensure
that the village continues as a
diverse and open community.
The community purchase of
The Storey Arms represents a
tremendous opportunity to
open the first cooperative pub in
Leicestershire and to develop it
into a thriving hub for Osgathorpe
and the immediate locality.
Fundraising efforts are already well
underway and details of the launch
of The Storey Arms share scheme
will soon be available.
The Osgathorpe Community Pub Limited (OCPL) is an Industrial and Provident Society (IPS) for the benefit of the community registered under the Industrial and Provident
Societies Act 1965, in which anyone can buy shares.
The Aim
To buy the freehold of The Storey Arms on behalf of the community and run it as a traditional, tenanted village pub. We want to see the pub open and flourishing as a business, serving the village of Osgathorpe and the surrounding area, as it has done for the last 180 years. The pub will sell high quality ales from local and national brewers together
with good quality food using local suppliers. We also plan to expand its role as a centre for cultural and sporting activities along with additional local services.
The Village
The Storey Arms is in the North West Leicestershire village of Osgathorpe, lying in the heart of the English countryside, surrounded on all sides by rolling fields and pastures.
The village dates back to before 1600, with the oldest house in the village dating back to 1100. The village has a thriving community of approximately 450 residents of all ages. Whilst it is very much a country village is it also very accessible being only minutes from the M1, A42, Loughborough railway station and East Midlands Airport, As with many English villages over the past few decades the village has lost services such as the Post Office, shop and two other pubs. However the village does retain a beautiful church and, of course, the last pub in the village, the Storey Arms.
