Village people

Have you set up an internet café in your cellar? Maybe you host regular meetings of the local ferret-keepers club in your function room. You might even have become the lifeline of your village, selling bread and milk after the closure of a local shop.

All village pubs with a story to tell are being invited to enter a brand new award supported by the Pub is the Hub campaign, which is backed by HRH The Prince of Wales.

The Calor Rural Pub in the Community Award will celebrate pubs that have diversified their businesses to offer their local community a wider range of services. Judges will recognise pubs that have used innovation to contribute to their village life in a way which will help sustain their community for future generations.

In addition to the top accolade, the winning pub will receive a visit from award-winning pub chef and co-director of the White Hart near Oldham, John Rudden. John will help the pub deliver a charity event for the benefit of the local community. Winners will also get an insight into the secret of his success as he hosts a return trip to his own pub.

With judging for the award looming closer and entries still pouring in, Calor has decided to extend the deadline until July 15 to make sure that no one misses out.

To give you a taster of the entries that have caught the organisers' imagination so far - and an idea of the sort of pubs that people are looking for - here are a few examples.

The Fighting Cocks, Stottesdon, Shropshire​

The Fighting Cocks is not only the social hub of the village of Stottesdon, it is also a valuable part of the local economy. During her eight years at the pub, licensee Sandra Jeffries has endeavoured to promote local suppliers.

From the beginning Sandra tried to source her products locally. The barrage of compliments she received on the quality of the produce led her to come up with the idea of converting the derelict barn adjacent to the pub into a shop selling local goods. With the help of a grant from the Countryside Agency and a £10,000 interest-free loan from a local brewery, Sandra opened the shop and has had a constant roaring trade ever since.

The pub also serves as a village hall, providing a venue for school meetings and similar. The function room is currently undergoing a major refurbishment, which will see the addition of a disabled toilet and broadband internet. Sandra is now considering turning part of the room into a wholefood café. Sandra hopes this could attract walkers in the area and become a meeting point for young mums.

Sandra entered the competition because she believes pubs which are active in their communities need more recognition. "We have our quiet times and the more attention we can draw to the place for those the better," he says. "It's not easy to run a village pub - you have to put in long hours and really enjoy what you're doing, so it's nice to see the work we're doing being recognised."

The Ship Inn, Styal, Cheshire​

Sheena and Ray Calland have a moto for the community at the Ship Inn - "Use us or you lose us!"

As the last pub standing in their area, the tenants recognise that their local needs to be fully integrated into community life to survive. As well as providing necessities such as bread and milk when the village store is closed, the staff are always willing to provide a helping hand when a villager is in trouble.

Sheena says: "We do help out where we can. On Saturday we were trying to get some burger buns for someone who'd forgotten them for their barbecue and then last night one of the barstaff drove my car out to rescue a regular whose car had broken down on the motorway and didn't know who else to call!"

Their friendly approach has been appreciated too. Sheena was presented with flowers at the village family fun day last year and was nominated for the Calor award by one of the regulars.

The Ship Inn has also proved useful as a meeting venue for community clubs, who lack the funding to hire a meeting room somewhere. The upstairs function room is on various nights used for the chess club, the Morris Minor club and the school PTA to convene.

"Big pubs have lots of promotions and awards but it's the little country ones like us that get forgotten and if we close then there's a real hole left in the community," says Sheila.

The Fox & Pelican, Grayshott, Surrey​

The Fox & Pelican has secured itself a place in the heart of its village in a multitude of ways.

The pub actively supports the "Buy in the village campaign", to encourage people to purchase local produce, allowing them to hold their group meetings on the premises. Their assistance helped Grayshott win the business category of the Village of the Year award in 2002. The conservation-conscious pub team also spur on the local litter pick-up team by providing them with free drinks.

Licensees Dave and Clare Etchell have been heavily involved in regular fundraising events, such as a charity breakfast morning for Cancer Research UK and a planned open-air opera performance which altogether raise around £10,000 a year. The pub really comes into its own during the festive season, too. As well as a Christmas market with gifts for local children, the pub powers up the village Christmas lights.

As the centre point of the village, the pub also acts as a noticeboard for community affairs, keeping the locals up to date on what's happening and when.

The pub was nominated for the award by a customer. Dave Bell, assistant manager, says: "We're really pleased to have been put forward for an award that is community focused. It shows that the pub has been involved in so much locally and we're proud of what has been achieved. It's a close community and a supportive network."