THE new landlords of a popular community pub in Hillesley are celebrating after winning a CAMRA prize after just 15 months in charge.

Karen McGeoch and Rod Undy took over the Fleece Inn at the end of 2016 which had been run by villagers for the previous four years.

Last week they were presented with a plaque after being named Dursley and District CAMRA pub of the year.

Before moving to England to run the Fleece, they ran a micro-pub in Mumbles near Swansea.

"We achieved the same accolade in Mumbles, with the first micro-pub in Wales, so it was almost an unwritten goal to repeat history, although we never thought that we would win," Rod said.

Their take-over of the pub only happened following a chance meeting with one of the previous pub shareholders who had a holiday property nearby.

Having successfully run the pub as a community enterprise since 2012, the Fleece's unique management concept was beginning to falter and the hunt for new owners was started.

Karen said: "We were actually about to sign a lease for a new business venture in Swansea when one of the shareholders who just happens to have a holiday property in Mumbles told us about the Fleece. 

"As we were in the area the following week we decided to take a look – and here we are today."

The real selling point for the couple was the sense of community because it fitted their remit perfectly and it is what they had originally set out to do. 
"When we looked at the pub’s existing business plan it had so many ideas that were almost a carbon copy of our own vision and values and this gave us a strong base to grow the business," Karen added.

The official presentation of the plaque from a representative of the Dursley branch of CAMRA, Peter Corfield, took place at the Fleece on Saturday, February 10 with music from the Roselly’s following to help kick-off celebrations.