The Bell, voted Sunday Times ‘UK Pub of the Year’, has been revamped with a £2m development. The pub is a hub for social value generated through activities such as employment, a constant presence in the village, and the establishment of a new venue for the village. Such as, a zero waste shop and the Old Haberdashery have been offered 5 year nil-rent opportunities, and 100 people come together each month for the village quiz.

Who is on the project team? (designer, consultants, etc)

The concept design created by Rich Brett of ‘Here Comes Tomorrow’ and ‘We Like Today’ was interpreted, compiled and erected by Master Craftsman Chris Baxter in the artist studios of The Old Ambulance Station at Bexhill – another community – led venture by Richard Upton; together with a band of artisan brothers, sisters poets, artisans, retailers and the wider community.

Describe the context of this project, its neighbourhood and people.

The Bell is a local pub in the centre of Ticehurst, East Sussex that had been in decline for many years, eventually closing in 2006. It lay empty until 2008 when it was bought by Richard and Rosalind Upton, who renovated the building and reopened the business in November 2011. The area is badly affected by traffic and is currently being considered for improvement as featured in the Neighbourhood Plan. The village has a stable population of over 1,600 although this is set to grow with the introduction of new housing. Ticehurst has many more amenities and businesses than other typical villages of a similar size in the area. It also has many listed structures, and a conservation area protects its central core. There are more people aged 50 and over than other age groups, although the village is also home to a higher-than-average number of families with children. There is a lower number of 20-39 year-olds and the ethnic mix is predominantly White. About 20% of the population live in rented accommodation and almost half of this needs improvement. There is a fuel poverty problem with some of the tenants in this type of housing. In 2007, when this ‘project’ was conceived with the rescue of a C16th Coaching Inn from residential developers, the neighbouring bakers, butchers, and grocers closed in quick succession, then followed by the offices of the Antiquarian Horological Society. All of these buildings are listed heritage assets that lay empty for some years.

Please share any data or figures that support your entry, for example increased footfall, happiness surveys, event attendance and/or observed changes in behaviour.

The Bell’s entire ecosystem – including the village square – is set up to benefit the community. In the years 2020-2029 the combined social value of improvements to both The Bell and the Village Centre is predicted to be almost £8.5M generating a sustainable return of £2.02 for every £1 invested in the two schemes. The most social value is again created by savings and income to stakeholders, foremostly local businesses and local communities. This social value was generated through activities such as employment, the re-introduction of the pub as a constant presence in the village, and the establishment of a new venue for the village that has become a catalyst for new business and an eating destination. The largest factor that created value was ‘savings and income’, largely because of direct and indirect influence on the local economy. It then follows that the stakeholder group that received the most social value benefit from The Bell’s activities was local businesses. But, in truth, the entire activation programme is boiled down to one catchphrase: Local and Loyal. 90-year-old Ken, who has lived in the village for his whole life, comes to The Bell and purchase his pint for £5 alongside his daily fish and chips, because of the discount scheme ‘Local and Loyal’ provided to residents to the area. (As mark of respect for his standing in the community, a beautifully-crafted wooden chair has been bequeathed to him for sitting in for his daily pint).

Did the project make a positive social and environmental contribution? If if it was a temporary intervention, is there a legacy plan? What happened to its tenants, users, materials and programming?

“The greenest building is. . . one that is already built”, wrote Carl Elefante. Salvaging, reviving and giving existing buildings strategies to thrive is the key to this project, making it the most environmentally and socially sound possible. The interventions’ raison d’etre is driving social and economic impact. All of this is done without a penny of public money – so it needs to be, by its very nature, profitable to be sustainable. After years of trial and error, global economic shifts, local community lifestyle changes, The Bell has achieved its biggest role to date. This is a 30 year ‘curation’ where the social dividend is measured alongside the financial dividend as the ‘Purpose’ of the enterprise. Every five years or so Professor Erik Bichard will reassess the social and economic impact to help reset and focus the KPIs. We intend to show, empirically, a decent risk-adjusted return over that period and intend to open source all our data and methods to help other ‘local regenerators’ - whether private they are protagonists for positive change or community groups to deliver the same or better. We intend to strengthen the local economy despite an ever-decreasing radius of suppliers. We will continue to recruit, mentor and train those particularly disadvantaged from our local community and provide discounted accommodation for some staff. Interventions are designed to create ‘a staircase of hope’ and opportunity for the local community.