THE Horse and Groom pub in Woodgreen has once again opened for business after months of being closed.

The pub has been taken over by Jason Schinkel who also runs the Bat and Ball in Breamore and the Radnor Arms in Nunton. 

The community in the village previously banded together in a bid to raise funds to buy the pub, which was designated as a community asset, when it was up for sale by brewery Hall and Woodhouse in June 2018, but were unsuccessful.

He said: “It is very exciting [to have reopened the pub]. It is going very well.

“There has been fantastic response from the locals. Everyone just loves the decor and the new look.”

The pub reopened on April 23 and has undergone a complete refurbishment with a new kitchen, decor and furniture.

“It’s like a new place,” adds Jason, who wants the Horse and Groom to become a “destination food place” with “more upmarket pub-style food”.

Head chef Peter Goodridge-Reynolds, who has previously worked with Raymond Blanc, has joined the team at the Horse and Green.

“It is going to be a food orientated place which already seems to be working very well and a place the locals will enjoy to go to and other people just as much,” said Jason.