How Ipswich pub is welcoming the community in Whitehouse

According to statisticians it is one of the most deprived areas in the county - and it has often felt as if it has been overlooked when other parts of the town have seen major developments.

Now the new owners of the Flying Horse pub are hoping to instil a real sense of community in the area - and have made a positive start in that task.

Sarah and Giulio Battistetti bought the pub earlier this year and during the summer it has undergone a significant makeover - turning it from a traditional pub into a cafe and bar aimed at offering something for all in the community.

Sarah Battistetti at the Flying Horse in Ipswich. (Image: Paul Geater)

They've put their own money into the project - but they've also received grants for their work to make the building more accessible and taken out considerable bank loans to make their dream come true.

Sarah doesn't have a background in the pub trade - her only experience was part-time bar work as a teenager.

Her background is in childcare - she was a childminder for many years and set up a after-school service for parents which was based in rooms at the Flying Horse.

Although she did work in food and drink retail management - and as a manager for a firm that supplied food and drink to the trade.

When the building came on the market early last year she and her husband decided to buy it to try to turn it into a real community asset.

She said: "It took a year to get everything sorted out but we took it over at the start of this year and got it open five weeks ago.

"I'd never run a pub - but I had been in the food business so I wasn't totally new to this."

The pub has been turned into a successful community cafe as well. (Image: Contributed)

Although it is still clearly a pub, it doesn't sell alcohol until after 5pm during the week - and its cafe is proving very popular.

Sarah said: "We're getting new people coming here all the time. We're doing well with breakfasts and Sunday lunches."

It has specialist cakes in the cafe and does some of its own baking - and she is very keen to keep prices down. As an independent pub/cafe she says she is able to offer prices below what many customers expect.

One thing Sarah is getting used to is the pattern of visitors: "Sometimes you think 'It will be quiet today' and you're rushed off your feet - I'm hoping to get to know how busy we'll be as we go on."

She's very aware of the importance of place like the Flying Horse for the community.

As a traditional 'wet' pub that didn't sell food, many local people never visited it. That is changing - among the new customers are residents from nearby sheltered housing who had never been there before.

The garden has been turned into an attractive area with tables and play equipment for young children - which is popular on fine days although Sarah has been frustrated by some parents who have not supervised their children while playing.

"We had some who seemed to be trying to break the equipment and their parents were doing nothing to stop them - but mostly people really like what we have here."

One thing she has noticed is that many people decide to come to events or go out for a meal at the last minute - which can make planning difficult.

And she is keen to make what is a large building - dating from the mid-1960s - available to local groups.

Her childcare service is continuing, and changes to make the building more accessible with ramps and accessible toilets should make it more attractive to groups.