The landlord of The Chestnut has announced their imminent departure.
The Main Road pub is set to close after a final Easter on Sunday 20 April 2025.
Paul Fletcher has been the landlord of The Chestnut since 2019 and in a Facebook post cited financial factors for the decision.
The post reads: “It’s with huge sadness I have to tell you I’m leaving The Chestnut. Easter Sunday (20th April) is likely to be my last day.
When I took on the pub in 2019, my main objectives were to create a pub I was proud to call mine, and secondly make some money. Which always helps when running a business!
I believe I’ve achieved the first objective. I could not be prouder. The Chestnut is a ‘proper’ village local, the team and those who’ve worked here over the last 5 years have all been a real credit and a pleasure to work with. Being in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide for 5 consecutive years would suggest we’re doing something right.
However, the last 5 years have also been the most difficult trading period on record and very few in the hospitality industry made a profit.
Last summer, I actually signed another 5 year tenancy. My logic was simple, surely the next 5 years can’t be as bad as the last 5. This is a great pub with great potential. Maybe just maybe, we’d start to see the financial benefits of all the efforts.
Then we had the Autumn Budget.
In December, The British Innkeeping Institute (BII) wrote ‘the new costs of employment and increases in business rates will render 80% of independent pub operators unprofitable, leading to at least 1-in-4 pubs closing”.
Eventually the pressures and stresses of the last 5 years have caught up with me. I’m no longer sure I have the drive to keep on going and that’s when I knew it was coming time to move on.
Before anyone asks ‘who’s taking over!’ etc, I honestly don’t know.
What I do know is, whoever takes on The Chestnut will have a fantastic pub, with fantastic staff and fantastic customers. All of whom I’ll miss … probably a lot more than I realise.
Thank You.”
A new landlord is being sought.
