MBE awarded to charitable licensee

A licensee has spoken of her delight at being awarded an MBE for her work for charity.

Pat Ost, who runs Punch Taverns pub the South Western Hotel in Tisbury, Salisbury, has been at the centre of the local community's fundraising activity for 19 years.

The pub raises cash for a range of good causes including the local cancer ward where a little girl is on dialysis waiting for a kidney transplant.

Local hospitals are often on the receiving end of Pat's pubs' generosity, which also offers its function room free of charge for local groups, as well as cooking and delivery meals for pensioners.

Pat said: "We have big fundraisers, last year we had a Strictly Come Dancing event, which got everyone from firemen to taxi drivers on their feet in front of our panel. We also have smaller, regular events including a charity quiz every month.

"I've never kept track of how much we've raised. When I receive a letter of thanks I put it on the noticeboard so the regulars can see where their efforts and donations have gone. The running total is substantial, but it's not a total that I have raised, it's what we have all achieved."

Pat and her regulars have already celebrated the news with a big party at the pub and she collect her medal from the Queen in the autumn.