The future of the Somerset Arms
Following the meeting of the Parish Council on November 13th when the future of the Somerset Arms was discussed, an extraordinary meeting of the Council took place on December 4th. There was one substantive item on the agenda: whether to trigger the 6-month moratorium on the sale of the Somerset Arms. Nine villagers were present.
The Parish Council confirmed its objective, which it shares with the community, of having a viable village pub. Following discussions about whether a commercial sale or a bid by a community interest group would offer the best chance of achieving the objective, it became clear that, although several of those present said they’d be prepared to support a community bid, there was no evidence that a community group had actually been formed and was in a position to begin the process of preparing a bid to purchase the Somerset Arms.
Amongst those present, there was a view that it might still be possible that such a group would emerge in the new year to prepare a bid. The Parish Council confirmed that it would support but not lead such a group and that any initiative would have to come from the community rather than from the Council.
In the light of this it was concluded that there was nothing to be gained by triggering the full 6-month moratorium period on the sale. This note on the discussion that took place – Somerset Arms Update – summarises the current situation.
