THE first community-owned pub in Suffolk has opened its doors to the public.

The Case is Altered in Bentley held a special open day time last month for the first time since the local community campaigned to buy the hostelry.

More than 200 people came to see the pub over the course of an afternoon even though not a single plate of food nor pint of beer were served.

Supported by and a member of the Plunkett Foundation, the Case is Altered was the last remaining pub in the village of Bentley.

It was closed between August and October 2012 and, after a brief period under a temporary manager, closed again in March 2013

But a group of Bentley residents came together with support from the Plunkett Foundation to buy the pub with a view to run it for the benefit of the community.

Every year a staggering 2,500 rural pubs shut down and too often the value of a pub to a community is often not fully realised until it closes or is threatened with closure.

Increasingly communities have become more determined to do something and take action to save their pub.

James Alcock, head of Frontline services at Plunkett, said: "We are delighted that the Case is Altered has been saved by the community – it demonstrates just what can be achieved when a community comes together with a common goal."

The Frontline team supported the Bentley community by setting up a legal structure for the community co-operative.

It has already worked with experienced individuals from other successful community-owned businesses - including co-operative pub The Green Man at Toppleslfield, Essex and Ryburgh Community Shop, Norfolk."

Bentley Community Pub chairman David Westley said: "We made our initial call to Plunkett's Pub Helpline in June last year. We are thrilled we have completed our community purchase of the Case is Altered and received the keys to the pub last week.

Now the hard work really begins preparing the pub for reopening, for which our target date is currently the Easter weekend.

Our thanks goes to the local community for their strong support and all the team at Plunkett for their support, we couldn't have done it without them."

A co-operative pub is where a significant part of a community comes together to form a co-operative to try and save and run their local.

Co-operative pubs make a vital contribution to building a more sustainable community by helping to regenerate the local economy, save on car journeys, and improve community spirit.

To date, some 22 co-operative pubs have opened across the UK. For details, visit www.pubs.coop.

-ENDS-

For more information contact Claire Keith-Anderson on 01993 810730 or email
claire.keith-anderson@plunkett.co.uk

Notes to editors:

The Plunkett Foundation (www.plunkett.co.uk) is the centre of expertise for rural communities across the UK looking to take control of the issues affecting them. Plunkett helps communities to set up enterprises in rural areas that are owned and led by those communities. We also support existing rural community enterprises by providing a range of support services. We do this by:

• Helping rural communities across the UK to set up and run community-owned shops and establish a wide range of other community-owned rural services such as co-operative pubs
• Promoting and supporting the development of community food and farming enterprises
• Advocating and raising awareness amongst policy makers, support organisations and rural communities themselves of the ability of rural communities to take control through community-ownership of the issues affecting them.

To-date 22 co-operative pubs have opened across the UK. Further information on the Plunkett Foundation's support for co-operative pubs can be accessed on www.pubs.coop.

The Case is Altered (www.thecasepubbentley.co.uk). Legend has it the pub was once held by a genial landlady who was not too fussy about payment for beer, but when she got married, the case was altered. There are rumours that the Case is Altered was built in 1736 making it contemporary with John Constable.

www.mycommunityrights.org.uk