Moves underway to try to save The Salmon Inn at East Ord, near Berwick

Discussions at a well-attended meeting hosted by Ord Parish Council focused on how best to save The Salmon Inn at East Ord as a pub and re-open it as soon as possible.

Some of the attendees agreed to join a working group to look into obtaining a valuation for the property and preparing a newsletter/leaflet to be delivered to every house within the parish to update residents and encourage further support.

They will also look to see what funding sources/grants are potentially available to help purchase the pub and get it up and running.

This comes after a planning application by Punch Partnerships seeking change of use permission to convert the property into three apartments – with a further four homes proposed in its grounds to the rear – was rejected by six votes to three by a Northumberland County Council committee in October.

The company said the pub had been on the market since May 2022, but there had been a lack of serious offers to retain the building as a pub since then.

There was also agreement during the meeting in East Ord Village Hall last week that The Salmon Inn could be used as a warm hub, as well as providing a Post Office service.

Ord Parish Council chairman Gordon Garland said: “We said in our objection to the planning application that we would be losing a valuable amenity within the village if it was approved and so after it was turned down, we felt it was important to arrange a public meeting to discuss the pub directly with members of the public and we had a positive response.

“Those of us in the working group will be working as quickly as we can as it was agreed that we need to try and re-open The Salmon Inn as soon as possible because the longer it is closed, the harder it will be to get customers back.

“The more people that can get involved, the merrier for us.”

The next public meeting has been provisionally arranged for Wednesday, January 10 in East Ord Village Hall at 7.30pm. The confirmed date, venue and time will be announced in due course.