A RURAL Ribble Valley pub that has been hailed ‘the hub of the community’ has reopened following a refurbishment project.

The Buck Inn closed its doors at the start of the year ahead of the scheme which saw the beer garden completely revamped and the interior reordered and rejuvenated.

The Grindleton pub, which is run by Andrea Flynn alongside her daughter Charlotte, is also looking to take on around four new members of staff once it starts serving food again in the coming months.

As part of the work, the inside of the pub was given a fresh lick of paint, a new small bar area was created and new furniture was installed.

The work, which cost £5,000, also saw the beer garden spruced up with a rockery put in, new plants and new flag stones.

Mum-of-two Andrea, who has run the pub for almost three years, said: “I’m really happy with how the place looks now and the feedback has been great so far.

“The locals and the regulars really like what we have done and they are also glad that we are not back open after quite a while.

“The pub has been given some TLC and it’s great to see.

“We are not doing food at the moment but we are looking to take on around four new members of staff so we can start in the next few months.

“At the moment it’s just me and Charlotte who are running the pub.”

Conservative general election candidate for the Ribble Valley, Nigel Evans, who was the chair of the All-Parliamentary Beer Group during his time as the borough’s MP, said: “This refurbishment shows the commitment of Andrea and the rest of the family to this pub.

“It’s very important to keep family-run freehouse pubs open in the Ribble Valley and this one really is the hub of the local community.

“The Buck Inn is very important to Grindleton and the surrounding area as it gives people somewhere to go and have a chat and get away from things; even from the general election.

“People come from miles around to come to this pub because they know that Andrea runs it in a very good way and that it is a quality place to visit.”