Visitors flock to Norfolk pub bought and renovated by wildlife charity

It was a much loved endangered species that desperately needed saving, but it was still a surprise when the Norfolk Wildlife Trust stepped in to revive it.

- Patrick Barkham

The Pleasure Boat Inn, a pub on the edge of Hickling Broad, a national nature reserve in the Broads national park, is now owned by the nature conservation charity, which is the first wildlife trust to own a pub.

The waterside pub, once enjoyed by boaters and sailors, had fallen into disrepair after being closed for three years. But locals and visitors flocked to it after the trust reopened it over the weekend.

"I've never been as excited about a pub opening, ever. Things that are really special to me: this pub, beer and Hickling Broad-bosh!" said Bex Kett, the manager, who has worked in permaculture (a farming approach that maintains food production and the balance of nature) and community pubs. The Pleasure Boat was her local for years. "It's groundbreaking. It's the first wildlife trust to own a pub. For me it's all about getting people to connect with nature again."

Villagers so missed their local that they would sneak into the derelict pub garden and drink their own beers, pretending it was still open.