A Pub and A Village Hall?

Some of the suggestions for increasing viability for the Cross Guns in community ownership include expanding its remit to include community groups events, exercise classes, family events, work from home in the pub, café and so much more.

These are all good ideas – but Pant is unusual in also having a thriving village hall just down the road from the pub.

We asked Helen from the hall committee if she thought this made the need for a community pub any the less and could these venues work together without treading on each other’s toes?

Said Helen: “The answer is yes, given that the two venues serve different purposes and have very
different strengths.

“And as a number of memorial hall trustees are also involved in trying to bring the pub into community ownership, we are ideally placed to increase the overall entertainment opportunity for locals by creating two vibrant community hubs.

“As most will know, Pant Memorial Hall is run as a registered charity entirely managed by volunteers. This keeps the hire fees low, with the hall offered on a ‘self-service’ basis – which is why everyone needs to complete a hiring form. You can’t just turn up at the hall, unless there’s a public event on. The Cross Guns will be very different.

“Hirers of the hall get the whole building to themselves, but are expected to put out furniture, put it away afterwards, do their own washing up, clean up after themselves and take all their rubbish away. This is all standard for an unstaffed venue.

“The main room is presented empty which makes it perfect for exercise classes and dance sessions, while with a few willing hands it can be set up in any desired configuration for all sorts of events.

“The hall is available 7 days a week between 7:30am and 11pm (later if you get a temporary event notice) so can work to the timetable of hirers. It’s also a dog-free zone, with the usual exemption for assistance dogs, which is strongly preferred by many people.

“There is a small, fenced play area, although the size of the site limits the outside offering. That said, the hall is great for a children’s party as a surprising amount of indoor play equipment can go inside.

“A community-owned Cross Guns will be staffed during its opening hours. That means that guests turn up to find the lights on, the comfy chairs ready and waiting, the tables set if food is offered and a cheery (we hope!) face behind the bar waiting to serve. No washing up to do, no food or drink to bring along, no hiring paperwork and no furniture to shift. There’s also a large outside space for those who enjoy fresh air, and/or are accompanied by children who want to run about – this has also worked well as venue for summer fetes with a bouncy castle, entertainers and so on.

“The Cross Guns doesn’t have space for an exercise class or dance session, but it has a long history of quiz, bingo and games nights. It has also been historically dog-friendly, which is great for dog-lovers.”

Added Helen: “The days of pubs being only for serious drinkers are long gone. If there’s a coffee machine and a selection of soft drinks, there’s no compulsion for alcohol intake which suits a lot of people. It’s also now acceptable to turn up to a pub for tea and cake, which is also simpler for the venue (and more profitable – people will pay a surprising amount for good cake!).

“Pant is perfectly positioned to refresh thirsty and hungry walkers – and the big car park could even be a coach stop for the many tour buses that go through the area in summer. One day we might all be welcoming canal boaters too, when the Mongomery Canal returns to the village.

“A community focussed Cross Guns would offer more reason for residents and visitors to stop and be part of our community.

“We may be a small village, but we could easily support two complementary venues.”