Save The Red Lion campaign welcomes latest patron – The Reverend Susie Williams

Save The Red Lion Campaign, which with increasing local support is campaigning to retain the Red Lion pub in Sidbury village, east Devon, is pleased to announce that it now has another local Campaign Patron – The Reverend Susie Williams. The Campaign already has local MP, the Rt Hon Hugo Swire as a Patron.

Susie is one of the Team Vicars within the Sid Valley Team Ministry, with special responsibility for the parishes of Woolbrook and Sidbury with Sidford.

It is great synergy that Sidbury’s ancient Saxon village church, St Giles, from where Reverend Susie ministers to the local community, is directly opposite the Red Lion pub in the centre of the village. Here the two key focal points for residents in Sidbury nestle together at the heart of the village alongside the other key village asset Drew’s the butchers.

Save The Red Lion Campaign Chair Fred Burnett said “It is fantastic that Susie Williams, our local vicar, has agreed to become a Patron of the Campaign in its fight to retain the Red Lion pub. With Susie having agreed to become a Campaign Patron so soon after our local MP Hugo Swire did will give great heart to all involved in the Campaign. We welcome Susie on board”.

The Campaign has submitted an application to East Devon District Council seeking to have the Red Lion pub listed as an “Asset of Community Value” which would place a moratorium on the immediate sale of the pub. This will also allow the Campaign to evaluate whether it should then take the Campaign to the next step of seeking to purchase the Red Lion on behalf of the community.

In announcing that she had agreed to become a Patron of Save The Red Lion Campaign Reverend Susie Williams said “As someone who passionately believes in keeping villages alive and ensuring that there are focal points in them for all residents, such as a church, shop, school and pub, I have followed the Campaign with great interest. I hope that by becoming a Patron of the Campaign I can help to garner further support across the Sid Valley for the retention of the Red Lion as a pub for the community”.

Reverend Susie concluded by saying “I wish the Campaign all the best in its endeavours to keep Sidbury as a vibrant village, something which having a successful pub in it can help to preserve”.

Keep up to date with the Campaign via the blog at - http://thepubinthevillage.blogspot.com.