Work to start on new rural brewery in Staffordshire as community pub wins major funding 

Plans for a new brewery at a community run pub are set to go ahead with the support of a £40,000 community grant.  

Rural Brew unveiled plans to set up home at the White Hart, Alton, two years ago.   

The pub’s owner, the Alton White Hart Community Interest Company say the plan will regenerate dilapidated former outbuildings, bring extra tourism to the village, and create new income for the historic High Street pub, safeguarding jobs.  

The Alton White Hart CIC worked with third sector funding specialists Heaward Solutions to win funding from Staffordshire Moorlands District Council via the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. 

Work is set to begin as early as next month with completion by January, 2025. 

Rural Brew owner Rob Goodley is currently a home-based brewer but has won orders from businesses, including Alton Towers, and needs space to grow.  

Planning permission was granted in early 2023 for a glass fronted brewhouse with a capacity to brew up to 2,000 litres of beer every three weeks.  

Tom Wilkinson, chair of the Alton White Hart CIC, said: “The plans are innovative and involve the creation of an attractive building where the brewing process will be visible to passers-by.  Our aim at the White Hart has always involved supporting the local economy and to create sustainable community assets and jobs. 

“This development will support around 11 full time equivalent jobs at the White Hart and encourage more people into the village through promotion of brewery tours.” 

Heaward Solutions Founder Andrew Heaward said: “I have known Tom for many years and have previously supported the Alton White Hart CIC. The UK Shared Prosperity Fund has a stated aim of building pride by supporting communities, people, and skills. 

“We believed that The Rural Brew project was a perfect fit, as it creates a new asset in a rural village and helps to sustain jobs and a significant community asset, the White Hart.” 

Under the agreement, the Community Interest Company will add its own contribution of £34,000 to the £40,000 UK Shared Prosperity Fund award. Rural Brew will be responsible for fitting out the brewery.