Category: Regeneration

Millfields Trust has been given a loan of £130,000 to purchase and revive the Famous Firkin public house in Adelaide Place, Stonehouse.

Millfields Trust is a not-for-profit social enterprise which aims to contribute to the regeneration of Stonehouse in Plymouth. The trust has been trading for 22 years, with its core business providing managed workspace. It will now use the loan to revitalise the pub, creating a welcoming community environment that brings local residents together.

The loan for the purchase came from Plymouth City Council’s new Inclusive Economy Fund, confirmed via a decision published last week.

Stonehouse has seen a huge loss of public houses, with many traditional pubs going out of business. Where there were once over 100 pubs in the area, this number dwindled to 30 in the 1990s and now there are just eight – one of which is the Famous Firkin.

The Famous Firkin, formerly known as the Adelaide Inn, has been a pub since 1921. It has been in gradual decline over the last decade, both in terms of the number of users and the physical condition of the building. The Millfields Trust has now established a relationship with the current owner and agreed Heads of Terms to purchase the building. 

The pub was once an important part of the fabric of the community, bringing people together and making this corner of Stonehouse a better place to live.

Roger Pipe, Millfields Trust CEO, said “Our vision is quite simply to make the Famous Firkin a thriving local once more. An open and friendly establishment which welcomes mums and dads for coffee on the way back from the school run, lunches for the residents of Ron King House and others nearby, a home for the knitters, the sewers, the euchre group, the darts, and pool teams and runs bingo and karaoke events.”

When brought into community use, pubs can help to renew local services and enable communities to thrive, ensuring that under-invested buildings are revitalised.

Councillor Rebecca Smith, Cabinet Member for Homes and Communities said: “It’s really rewarding to see that this former pub, located in a Grade 2 listed building, can be brought back to life with the help of a loan from our Social Enterprise Investment Fund. By supporting Plymouth’s voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors, we’re working together to build back better following the pandemic, helping to get people back into work and revitalising underused buildings.”

A community share offer will be launched to help purchase the Famous Firkin to create a real sense of local ownership. Professional staff will be appointed to manage the pub and will have on site accommodation as part of appointment. Volunteers will then be sought to run events and activities.

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