A dedicated community group in Penmachno has successfully secured the future of their local pub after raising £145,000 in just 11 weeks. Cynnal Bro Machno reached the incredible milestone through a community share offer, ensuring that The Eagles will remain a vital hub for the village.
"We launched the share offer on February 14, and we are thrilled with the support we’ve had. We now have over 490 investors! The local community, as well as new friends from as far afield as Australia, the USA and the Falkland Islands have come together and bought shares to help us save our village pub," said Ceri Morris, the group’s secretary.
With the current owners needing to sell, the pub was under direct threat of closure in the very near future. The group will now supplement the share funds with grants and government loans to complete the purchase and renovation of the pub, with the aim of securing The Eagles for the community by September.
The group have raised further funds and support by holding events including local Welsh music, pub quizzes, a community auction featuring gifts generously donated by local businesses and celebrated the end of the share offer with a beer festival in partnership with local brewery Cwrw Nant.
"We have had incredible support from local people, musicians, and visitors to the village. We’ve also discovered the power of social media, sharing our message with Welsh societies around the world - it has had great success, as we soon look forward to hosting a Welsh choir from Melbourne, Australia who have bought shares and are now part of our little community here in Penmachno," added Ceri. "We’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity and support we have had - people clearly want this pub to remain at the heart of the community."
The new group of shareholders will soon be invited to vote in a committee, then work will begin to recruit a manager to run the pub. Cynnal Bro Machno will continue to raise funds to support their work, so there is still plenty of opportunity to support the project.
How to get involved
- Visit the Cynnal Bro Machno website: cynnalbromachno.cymru
- Look out for events and news on Cynnal Bro Machno Facebook Page
- Visit the website at: Cynnal Bro Machno Ein Bro, Ein Dyfodol - Our Valley, Our Future
This project is part funded by UK Government through the Shared Prosperity Fund. The project has received support from Menter Iaith Conwy, Cwmpas and The Plunkett Foundation.
