Trawden locals raise half a million to buy the last pub in the Lancashire village

• Report by Andrew Fletcher

Residents in a Lancashire village are celebrating after raising more than half a million pounds to save their local pub.

The Trawden Arms is the last remaining pub in Trawden, a small rural village near Colne.

Last year it was put up for sale, and fearing the worst, the locals hatched a plan.

The listing of the pub as an 'Asset of Community Value', meant villagers were given the first chance to buy it... if they could raise £520,000 pounds.

More than 300 people came forward to buy shares.

It comes during one of the biggest crisis the industry has ever faced. A report earlier this year claimed up to 30 pubs a day are currently closing, after battling to survive the pandemic.

Residents in Trawden are encouraging others to fight for their local pub.

That community atmosphere can be felt across the across the road from the Trawden Arms.

There you'll find a shop, library and community centre all owned and run by thecommunity trust which will now add the pub to its portfolio.

It's made Trawden the first village in the country to have all of those local assets under community control.

However, for the locals, the job isn't quite done.

They're now searching for the perfect landlord to run the Trawden Arms. But what sort of person are they looking for?