Entrepreneur steps in to reopen derelict pub

Billy Hutchinson says he intends the venue to become a community hub

An entrepreneur who wanted to save a derelict village pub from redevelopment has said more than 20 jobs have been created by reopening it as a restaurant and bar.

Billy Hutchinson's latest enterprise is the Lesters Arms in Brewood, Staffordshire, which was formerly known as the New Inns.

It closed six years ago but an application to turn it into housing was rejected in 2019 after a number of objections, including one from CAMRA.

Mr Hutchinson said he spent £1m on refurbishing the building, intended to be, he added, a hub for the local community.

The businessman, who runs large box packaging specialist Lesters in Burntwood, Staffordshire, said: “It would have been so easy to let a derelict pub be demolished and turned into housing, but where’s the benefit in that?"