The Rose & Thistle Reborn
For centuries the Rose & Thistle has been a community cornerstone: a friendly pub, good restaurant and meeting spot for villagers and visitors alike. For generations, it worked alongside the Red Lion and the Green Dragon at Church End, as well as The Rising Sun and The King's Head in the wider village.
Despite the significant and continuing growth in Haddenham, three of these five pubs have now closed. The only surviving restaurant in the village, an Indian, also closed in 2024.
The Rose & Thistle closed in 2019 and, while the current owners had hoped to reopen, it is now for sale and at risk of being sold to developers and converted to a residential property. This is our final chance to stop it from being last orders at this iconic village pub!
We want the Rose & Thistle to complement, and not compete with, the other two pubs in the village, building on Haddenham's strong track record of community ownership. Our research suggests there is demand for something different in Haddenham and the continued growth in the village suggests the market can sustain three different pubs.
Our Vision
The Rose & Thistle is reborn as a vibrant, inclusive community hub; a place where everyone comes together to forge friendships over food and drink.
Our Mission
To create a family friendly social space for our village, where people of all ages feel at home.
To ensure community ownership and involvement, so the community have a say in what kind of pub they want, and this pub remains vital to the village for generations to come.
To champion local produce and suppliers, supporting our region's farmers, brewers and artisans.
Our Team
The Rose & Thistle Team is a group of Haddenham residents united by a shared goal: to see the Rose & Thistle Reborn. We come from a broad section of the village community, some new to the village and some born and raised here. We represent a range of specialist skills, including architecture, construction, finance, law, strategy, project management and, of course, the pub trade. We're committed to this mission and, with the help of the 300 supporters that have already signed up to our campaign via our survey Facebook Page and website, we are confident we can realise our vision.
Our Support
We have secured the endorsement of our local MP and vice-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Beer, Greg Smith MP, who says: "Pubs are an essential backbone of rural life, not least in villages like Haddenham. Pubs aren't just somewhere to enjoy a pint, glass of wine or some good old fashioned pub grub, but are the beating heart of countryside communities.
Village pubs are people places, where everyone can come together, particularly those living alone who would otherwise be isolated at home. That's why I am pleased to back the Rose & Thistle Reborn campaign in Haddenham and hope we can bring this great village pub back to life to serve Haddenham once more."
We also have the backing of the CEO of the British Beer and Pub Association, Emma McClarkin OBE, who says: "Pubs sit at the heart of the community, providing a welcoming space for people to come together and stave of loneliness. A busy and successful pub boosts the local economy, creates jobs and supports supply chains from grain to glass. That's why I'm delighted to see local groups, like the Rose & Thistle Reborn Team, recognising the importance of the pub and pulling together to stop last orders at their village pub and preserving it as a community hub for generations to come."
Fighting Fund
We've raised £600so far, enabling us to enlist the help of the Plunkett Foundation, a charity who specialise in assisting communities to buy and run assets which are important to them. 95% of those they have helped are still thriving 5 years after their inception, compared to 50% of non-community-owned businesses.
Our priority right now is to raise a further £3500 through our GoFundMe Page to develop the business case for the Rose & Thistle, demonstrate its potential to investors, and continue to build our growing support base. We need to pay Plunkett's (very reasonable) fees, build our website, and cover a range of fees to register as a business, conduct a survey etc.
Once we've achieved this, we'll apply for grants from local trusts and foundations to raise capital. We will also run a community share offer, whereby locals can take a stake in their local pub.
If, like us, you look forward to the day your family and friends can enjoy a get-together in the iconic Rose & Thistle, then please donate to our fighting fund
