Bid submitted for The Inn at Freshford
The owners of Iford Manor on the Somerset-Wiltshire border are hoping to give two historic pubs a new lease of life.
William and Marianne Cartwright-Hignett have been listed as the preferred bidder for The Inn at Freshford and were also announced the successful bidders for The Cross Guns at Avoncliff, just across the border in Wiltshire.
The Inn at Freshford is designated an Asset of Community Value, and Bath & North East Somerset council notified the local community of the vendor’s intentions on 11th February. This gives the community six weeks to lodge an expression of interest, a process which is designed to allow communities to protect pubs and other properties in the case that no-one else wants to take them on.
William Cartwright-Hignett said, “We are thrilled to have had our bid accepted on The Cross Guns at Avoncliff and to be the preferred bidder and operator for The Inn at Freshford.
“These two pubs have been in my life as long as I can remember. They really matter to us, as does their place in our community. I am very hopeful that my family and I can be the ones to give them the long-term futures they deserve.
“I’ve been going to these pubs all of my life, and am looking forward to making sure I can keep them going for another 40 years. I have fond memories of long afternoons and evenings with friends, live music, great food, wellies and dogs – both of these are proper community pubs.”
William and Marianne took over the Iford Manor Estate from William’s parents in 2016 and have continued the restoration of the historic buildings and Grade 1 registered garden. The estate is open to the public in the summer and hosts an annual international Jazz Festival in June.
The couple have also developed the Iford Manor Café & Kitchen as a café and fine dining restaurant. Open year-round, the venue uses estate-reared meats and local produce.
Speaking about the timescales involved, William added, “Our intention is to reopen these much-loved pubs as soon as possible and get them back to serving the local community. Of course, we need to wait for the outcome of the Community Asset moratorium for Freshford, but if all goes well, we could have these two gems reopened by the end of May.”
