Case study

£100,000 Community Ownership funding helps save The Racehorse

The Racehorse pub in Westhall, East Suffolk, has now been bought by the local community with the help of £100,000 from the Community Ownership Fund.

• From: Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
• Published: 17 January 2023

A key part of the Westhall Community

The Racehorse has been part of the community since the 1860s but closed in 2016. Although the pub was leased back to the community in 2019, it continued to struggle. Support from the government allowed local villagers to purchase the pub in March 2022.

The whole community are involved in the running of the pub.

This includes:

• serving behind the bar
• organising quiz nights
• cleaning the beer pipes

It is hoped the community ownership of the pub will help reenergise the village.

Find out more about levelling up.

Published 17 January 2023