New tenant landlord sought by community-owned village pub

The ownership group of the Black Horse, at Grimston, which has been been closed since January 2020, had lined up a prospective tenant but that has now fallen through.

Nearly £250,000 was raised by the community and further funding – taking the total to almost £500,000 – was obtained through contributions from More than a Pub , through the Plunkett Foundation, a Melton Borough Council community grant and UK government funding from the Community Ownership Fund.

This enabled the community to secure a purchase of the pub back in May and to carry out the ongoing refurbishment work on the building, which has been a public house since 1753.

Mike Petty, chair of the community group, said: "An army of community volunteers and local traders have now been working for weeks refurbishing the pub so we can open later this year.

“Unfortunately, the prospective tenants we had lined up to run The Black Horse have had to withdraw due to unforeseen circumstances, so the group is again seeking a suitable tenant.”

The ownership had a boost recently when it was named as a finalist in the the BBC Radio Leicester Make a Difference Awards 2023 – members celebrated a Highly Commended accolade in The Fundraiser Award category.

Mike commented: “It is fantastic that our community efforts have been recognised.”

Anyone interested in the tenancy vacancy at the Black Horse is invited to email [email protected] for details.

The pub has traditionally drawn regulars from nearby Saxelbye and Shoby, as well as Grimston.