Join our new WhatsApp channel: The Morning Round-Up
Get the biggest pub trade stories straight to your phone. Listen to our one-minute daily news briefing and receive breaking news, exclusives and sector updates throughout the day. Remember to turn notifications on in the top right corner!
Join the channel here.
Severn Trent Water has proposed the closure, which Usher said was the main road from Chester to the pub, to undertake water pipe installation work.
Usher runs a number of restaurants in the north west and opened the White Horse, Churton in 2023 after the pub had been shut for three years.
He said the water company was closing the main road from Chester to the pub for three months, from the beginning of August.
The chef and hospitality operator told The Morning Advertiser: “From a business point of view, to have access [to the pub] denied for three months in these current times, it will probably send us under.
“It could be the end of the pub if [the road closure] were to happen.”
In social media post, Usher asked for help and outlined the impact not only on the pub but in the surrounding areas.
He said: “We were issued with a letter...about some works that are apparently being proposed by Severn Trent Water to put a new pipeline in.
“They’re proposing to close the main road from Chester up to the White Horse pub so it’s going to affect all four neighbouring villages, all the local people.”
Business in jeopardy
The chef outlined how many in the sector are battling to survive currently and the impact this proposed road closure could have on the rural site.
“I don’t want to catastrophise and I don’t want to put the fear people about the pub but I’ve been very vocal and so have so many people in the industry that hospitality is struggling so much and me and the business are struggling so much, that includes the pub unfortunately,” he added.
“The pub is struggling and yet without catastrophising, this could be the nail in the coffin for the pub.
“The business owns the freehold of the pub, that’s great but the business inside it is in jeopardy if that road is closed for three months.
“It’s the road coming from Chester so all those people who come from that way [for] things like our guest chef nights, it would be mayhem if people have to go around the 25 minute diversion.
“Just in general, coming to the pub, I know for myself, if I was just popping out for lunch on whim, ‘where are we going to go? We won’t go there because the road is closed’ or go to go there, see the main road from Chester is closed [and think] ‘let’s just go somewhere else’.”
He went onto highlight how reduced trade could impact not only in the short term but also in the long as well as how the closure could affect the wider community, outside of the pub.
Usher said: “That could have a lasting effect on the pub once it was to reopen because once somebody starts going somewhere else regularly, they might prefer it and never come back. That is the devastating consequence of that road being closed.
“For the local residents, there are a lot of elderly people up that way, how are emergency services going to get there? Where are they going to come from?
“There’s so much that hasn’t been thought of and there’s so much we can do to prevent this.
“The works are meant to start on 3 August and all I can do is, we can write to our MPs, which I will do - please join me in doing that. We can seriously kick up a stink about this.”
Company response
Usher made several suggestions instead of a full closure, calling for an alternative to be put in place.
He said: “What are the alternatives? Surely there can be a traffic light system that can be put in. Can they not work at night? Can they not light the road up at night because there’s no lights there at moment on that whole road?
“This is a cost thing, trust me, Severn Trent Water have the money to do this, they just don’t want to, they’re going for the easy and cheap option. That cheap option for them is the expensive option for all of us.
“Please get behind this...we need help. If this goes ahead on 3 August and the main road from Chester is closed up to Churton, up to Farndon, up to Holt, up to Aldford, if it is closed for three months, I’m not sure we will be here in January next year.
“I’m asking for your help...if you like us, if you’re a local, let’s prevent this from happening.”
Severn Trent said the works will be reviewed ahead of the planned start date and said it would be hosting drop-in sessions for to hold discussions about the project.
A spokesperson for organisation told The Morning Advertiser: “We absolutely understand the disruption major projects like these can cause and want to reassure people that we take this into account when planning our works.
“We have met with local councillors and MPs to discuss the next steps for this project, and we’ll be reviewing this phase of works to understand if there are any areas where we can reduce the impact on communities.
“We’ll also be hosting a drop-in session towards the end of July and will share the date once agreed, giving people the opportunity to talk to our project team and ask any questions they may have.”
