Welcome to The George Community Pub
News Archive from…..
2023
With all Good Wishes for Christmas and the New Year
The committee look forward to seeing you in a warm and welcoming George Pub next Christmas!
Click HERE to see a video of the George team at the Christmas Market.
Councillors tour of the George
A second hard hat tour took place on Saturday 18th November and although the weather was dull and dreary it was very successful with 15 people attending from East Suffolk Council, Wickham Market Parish Council, and members of the local community.
The visit provided an opportunity to hear from heritage building specialist Ben Watlin, from Seamans Builders about the restoration process, how it is progressing, along with some of the many challenges on the way.
The George Community Engagement Co-ordinator, Christine Abraham and members of the Management Committee were in attendance to talk about the longer-term vision for the Pub and the activity space once the restoration is complete.
To view more pictures, click here
The second issue of our newsletter is now available
Read all the latest news from The George Community Pub team. Items include an update on the building work, a profile of the new Community Engagement Coordinator, and The George’s role when England was a Republic.
The next newsletter will be published in January 2024
Click here to view the Newsletter
The George Pub Games Evening and Quiz night
Held in the Village Hall on Friday 29th September, over 70 people enjoyed an evening of competitive games and quizzing. Ten different pub games provided a highly entertaining evening from darts to bar skittles and shove halfpenny the hall was a buzz of activity which finally ended in a testing quiz.
Tickets included a free hotdog and the paid for bar was kept busy the whole evening. The first monthly 200 Club draw took place in the half time break and winners were announced. On leaving the event many people asked when the next evening would be organized.
Thanks to all those who attended and our volunteer helpers on the night; your generosity has added over £700 to our ‘Gilding the Building’ fund which will go towards putting back the less essential things that had to be taken out of our budget to meet our overall target.
We hope you all had a good time and please keep a look out for our next Games and Quiz evening.
Until then please come and see us at Wickham’s Christmas Market on the 02 December where we will have a stall and be able to update you with building progress. Why not put your name on the list for a hard hat tour?
October Draw Results
Our 200 Club draw took place during a committee meeting held at the Resource Centre on 30th October 2023. The winning ticket holders are:
- 1st PRIZE – IAN THORNTON ,
- 2nd PRIZE – SIMON HARRINGTON,
- 3rd PRIZE – ROBERT CUTTS
50% of all proceeds go towards our Gilding the Building Fund
If you wish to support our Gilding the Building campaign, there are two ways you can help:
You can join our 200 Club. Membership details can be found here
Or you can also be part of this exciting project by buying shares, ask for full details via email to secretary@thegeorgecommunitypub.co.uk
September Draw Results
Our inaugural 200 Club Prize Draw took place at our successful Pub Games and Quiz Night on 29th September. The winning ticket holders are:
- 1st PRIZE – Michael Golding,
- 2nd PRIZE – Dick Jenkinson,
- 3rd PRIZE – Ray Lewis
All proceeds will go towards our ‘Gilding the Building’ campaign, which includes the fitting out and resurfacing of the pub garden.
If you would like to join our 200 Club, membership details can be found here
The first issue of our newsletter is now available
Read all the latest news from The George Community Pub team. Learn about the progress being made during this period of discovery as we peel back the history of the last remaining pub in the village. Find out about our ‘behind the scenes’ hard hat tours which give an insight to the methods used in the restoration of this 500 hundred year old Grade II listed building.
The Newsletters will be published regularly as the project progresses.
Click here to view the Newsletter
Community Engagement Coordinator appointed
The employment of a Community Engagement Coordinator is an important step in making the George More Than a Pub and we are pleased to announce the appointment of Christine Abraham to the role from 1st October. For More information Click here.
Work on the George restoration is now well underway – let’s celebrate
Join us for a fun evening of traditional pub games, quiz , and of course a well stocked bar.
Friday 29th September at 7pm in the Village Hall.
News Headlines – July 14th
The George Community Pub launches its
You are all invited to join the George Community Pub 200 Club and help our ‘Gilding the Building’ costs!
Whilst the full restoration costs of the building have been secured, we have had to make cost savings in other areas to meet overall targets. Profit from the 200 club will go towards the cost of bringing back some of the original specification such as real wooden floors and resurfacing of the beer garden. We call it ‘Gilding the Building’.
By contributing £5 per month (or more) you will have the chance to win cash prizes and… potentially raise £6000 for the George every year!
For full details of how it works and how to apply click here.
News Headlines – July 5th
We’ve done it!
The National Lottery Heritage Fund have been in touch to say that we have been successful in winning our request for additional funding. This together with the Community Ownership Fund Award, other grant providers, shareholders and your unwavering generosity and support means that all funding for the building is now complete and our collective dream of saving the George will happen.
The George will be saved to serve many generations to come. A welcoming place to meet and eat with friends and family, it will be the ‘peoples pub’ and the heartbeat of the village. We thank everyone that have helped with their belief and investment including National Lottery players everywhere.
Restoration will start mid-July ‘23 with a finishing date for a fully fitted and open pub scheduled for autumn ‘24.
To read our full press release please click here.
April 26th update – the fight to save the pub continues
Anyone listening to Radio Suffolk this morning would have heard about Ipswich Town’s fantastic win at Barnsley, Ed Sheeran’s court case in New York and in the same breath Wickham Market’s fight to save their historic Pub.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund are considering the rising costs of restoration alongside other heritage projects nationwide. The more we close the gap by buying shares the better the chances of a successful outcome.
We don’t have long, so buy shares now for your part in the pub’s history!
For more details contact info.wmgeorge@gmail.co
April update – more funding secured but there’s still a gap
Two weeks ago we explained that, having provisionally secured full funding of the project against the Cost Plan prepared by our professional team, the Main Builder tender returns had subsequently come in much higher than forecast. Therefore a new funding gap had opened which needed to be closed before we could let the contract for the restoration
We quickly moved to close the gap by discussing cost reductions with the Main Building Contractor and by also increasing our funding.
We asked for a further share investment to help us reach our target of £225,000 so that we could secure the Community Share Booster investment of £50,000. We are delighted to announce that the share target was reached and the Booster investment secured. A massive Thank You to those individuals who stepped forward to help us achieve this.
The share investment total is now £275,000 and we have a total of 441 shareholders. We have now closed the Share Offer. The money continues to be held in a designated account awaiting confirmation that the Saving The George project can proceed.
In the last two weeks we have undertaken a major cost reassessment with our chosen main building contractor (Seamans Building) and Quantity Surveyors (Castons). This has lead to significant cost savings in the re-building work without compromising our aims and vision for The George.
However, despite our efforts with both fundraising and cost savings, there still remains a funding gap. This has been discussed with The National Lottery Heritage Fund and we were invited to apply to them for a grant increase to close this gap.
We have submitted a detailed application but understand that because of higher building costs everywhere there are many projects that are now having to do this and that our application will be considered alongside all others.
Guided by estimated costs from our professional team and before the building tender returns came in so high, we had planned that next week we would sign the Main Building Contract to begin the restoration process. Now we need to wait until our additional Heritage Fund application is considered by their assessment panel which is due to meet in June.
This is all very frustrating and as soon as we know the outcome we will let you know.
2022
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you from The George Management Team!
It’s been a whole year since we were notified of our successful £988,200 Lottery Grant from The National lottery Heritage Fund and much has happened during 2022. As Christmas and 2023 approaches this is a good time to reflect on the year and look forward with optimism. The George vision is getting closer!
Our second share offer was launched in February, with a minimum target of £225,000. Clearly we have had to battle against the effects of a high increase in the cost of living and, finding ourselves £80,000 short of that target, in September we re-publicised the Share Offer. Since then, we have gained a further £40,000 and now have 110 new shareholders from this Share Offer, making an incredible 440 individual investors in total. Could we possibly get to 500? We would really like to get to our share target rather than rely entirely on grant applications to fund the difference, so the share issue is still open. If you know anyone that might be interested in being a shareholder or increasing their current commitment, we would be delighted to hear from them. Please help spread the word;
Click here to view the full Christmas Message which includes up-to-date project information, fundraising, recent activities, and how to apply for shares.
Best wishes from the George Team
Our Popular Quiz Night returns
October 2022
After the success of the July quiz we are holding another on Friday 28th October at 7pm in the Wickham Market Village Hall. Come along and have a great fun night out whilst helping us to raise the final amount we need to complete our funding.
Heritage Art Exhibition at the George
September 2022
During the summer term Wickham Market Primary School children completed two Heritage Art Projects that were initiated by the George Community Pub as part of their heritage activities programme. The first project was for pupils to illustrate five prominent heritage buildings on our High Street culminating in an exhibition of 65 paintings on the hoarding that surrounds the George. The exhibition opening ceremony is on the new date of Saturday 1st October at 10am and is being opened by Suffolk County Councillor Alexander Nicoll. Everyone is invited
Not only will you learn more about the heritage of our village but there is a very moving display of paintings of the Queen completed by the children during her Jubilee year.
In the second project pupils from the School conducted interviews with some of our more senior residents in order to compare life as it is today. The interviews were recorded and now provide a fascinating insight to the memories of a different generation.
Quiz Night on 22 July - the results are in!
July 2022
Shunning the rival minor attraction of Latitude, over seventy quizzers filled Wickham Market Village Hall on Friday night to flex their mental muscles and raise over £1000 for the George.
Team Ding Dong (Leslie Phillips fans?), the less modest three-quarters of which are pictured bottom right, were the eventual winners after nine hard-fought rounds.. More information is on on our blog page.
Thanks to all who attended and our volunteer helpers on the night and your generosity which is helping towards the re-build costs. We hope you all had a great time and, please, keep a lookout for our next George event/get-together.
If you would like to help us organise, or have any ideas for, future events please contact us on info.wmgeorge@gmail.com
News on the User Group
February 2022
Thankyou to everyone who volunteered to become a member of the George User Group.
Everyone who has volunteered was welcomed to the User Group with a tour of the George and a presentation on the project. The User Group will play a vital role in supporting and advising the Management Committee on decisions which will affect the look, feel and use of the George as a comfortable, inviting, and family-friendly community pub, inclusive to all.
The User Group will aim to represent future users of the pub and input views and opinions on important detail. The group will make informed recommendations on matters such as interior design and ambience, garden design, food and drink, events and activities and how we can make the George a fantastic place to visit.
2021
An early Christmas present for Wickham Market!
December 2021
We are fantastically pleased to announce that our application to The National Lottery Heritage Fund for a Heritage Enterprise Delivery Phase Grant has been approved. Thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the country’s National Lottery players, a grant of £988,200 will provide the largest part of the funds required to allow us to reconstruct the historic George as the community pub at the heart of Wickham Market. This is, in no small measure, down to the support we have received from you over the past few years. We must also not forget to express our gratitude to those individuals and organisations whose funding, advice and encouragement has got us this far.
There is still a lot of hard work ahead for our volunteer team and now is certainly the time to get in touch if you want to join the Committee or our User Group, or volunteer to help with Project activities or events; particularly if you have skills or expertise which you think will be relevant.
We cannot start work fully until we are granted Permission to Start by the Heritage Fund, though we hope to receive this in February. Permission, depends, however, on our raising a large part of our match funding. The main source will be our second share offer, due to launch in mid-January. For those of you who do not already have shares this will be your chance to become part of ‘The George story’ (for an investment of as little as £50). For those of you who, this year, made pledges , which was vital in demonstrating to the Heritage Fund our capacity to raise the money we still need, this will be your opportunity to honour your promise to buy shares.
More details on the award, the next stages, the share offer and volunteering will follow soon.
Please feel free to share the good news with your friends and family or on social media, or contact us for more details or to find out how you can be part of our team.
Summer 2021
Latest progress update on The George project
Following our successful planning application, we want to clarify the type of pub The George will be, what makes a community pub and the anticipated dates for building works and pub launch. With that in mind, we have produced a full News Update. Please click here to view the News Update.
We are currently finalising our presentation to The Lottery Heritage Fund for second round funding which will be submitted later in August. We should have an answer sometime in November / December 2021, in the meantime as our work continues we will issue regular updates to keep you all up to speed with progress.
April 2021
Report on The George project presented at the Annual Parish Meeting
The George Management Committee were pleased to be invited to submit a report for the Wickham Market Annual Parish meeting which was held on 12th April. The report summarises the objectives of the project and what we hope to achieve. It also gives an update on where we are we on our journey to restore The George. Click here to view a copy of the report.
February 2021
Suffolk County Councillor shows his support for the George
There has been much support for the George Community Pub in Wickham Market but none more so than from Alexander Nicoll our County Council representative. Alexander has supported many community projects in Suffolk and for ‘Saving the George’ he has always been willing to stand up and promote our message through the media and other contacts.
Once again Alexander and Suffolk County Council have shown tremendous support by awarding a localities grant to The George of £2680 to help fund our latest ‘pledge to invest’ publicity campaign. Pledges are needed to show other grant providers such as the National Lottery Heritage Fund that a wide section of the community is behind this project. Have you ‘pledged to invest’ yet? Do it now by clicking the big button above.
Many thanks to Councillor Alexander Nicoll for helping us along the way.
February 2021
The results of our e-survey of last year
In April 2020 we decided to carry out a survey of what people wanted in terms of food offerings, beer choices, how often people eat out, what activities they wanted to see in the pub, whether they wanted a micro brewery, etc. Because of Covid 19 restrictions we were limited to doing the survey on line and via email to only our shareholders and friends. We had a very good response to the survey which has provided valuable data which will aid in future decision making. The survey report can be found here.
For completing the survey, we promised a free meal for two when the pub opens. The winners were chosen at random which are: Daniel Hussey, Kate Thurlow, Michael Verdon Miller, Ruth Ascroft and Bryan Hall. Congratulations to them all.
Our thanks to everyone who took part.
January 2021
Christmas Card Questionnaire – How would you like to see your pub?
The results of the Christmas Card questionnaire are in, including colour preferences for the building and options for the front garden, cycles and wood fired pizza oven. Alongside these questions there were many other comments all of which are summarised in this report.
Thanks to everyone who took part.
If you are not already a member and want to subscribe to our ‘Friends of the George’ email group to receive updates on progress, details of events, news, etc, then please click on the icon to be added to the friends list.