{"id":2177890,"date":"2026-08-24T07:53:36","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T06:53:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/northwest\/?p=2177890"},"modified":"2026-08-24T07:53:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T06:53:36","slug":"heritage-charity-takes-over-ownership-of-historic-port-sunlight-pub","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/northwest\/news\/2177890-heritage-charity-takes-over-ownership-of-historic-port-sunlight-pub","title":{"rendered":"Heritage charity takes over ownership of historic Port Sunlight pub"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">An historic pub in the Wirral village of Port Sunlight has been acquired by Port Sunlight Village Trust, safeguarding the future of one of the village&#8217;s most recognisable buildings while benefiting both the community and visitors alike.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Previously owned by a private property business and leased to national pub chain Greene King since 2015, the Grade II-listed Bridge Inn pub has been a much-loved landmark and part of village life for more than a century. It is home to a public bar, hotel, function rooms and restaurant.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Port Sunlight Village Trust is an independent charity established by Unilever in 1999 to take over custodianship of the model village, which was built by William Lever in the late 19<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">th<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> century for the workers at his nearby soap factory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The charity is responsible for maintaining the village\u2019s 130 acres of green spaces, a third of its 900 Grade II-listed houses and most of its public buildings.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Built in 1900, the Bridge Inn was originally opened as a temperance hotel and provided accommodation and refreshments but did not serve alcohol, reflecting William Lever&#8217;s commitment to promoting workers&#8217; welfare.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Notably in 1903, following a village referendum, the Bridge Inn was granted a licence to sell alcohol, becoming the only public house in Port Sunlight &#8211; it has continued to operate as a pub ever since.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Mike Ward, CEO of Port Sunlight Village Trust, said: \u201cWe\u2019re very happy to be the new owners of this special pub. Purchasing the Bridge Inn reflects our commitment to preserving the unique character and heritage of Port Sunlight.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cThis investment will enable us to better safeguard the Bridge Inn\u2019s heritage and we look forward to working with the leaseholders to further develop a high quality hospitality offer here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">He added: \u201cThis investment will also support our vision for Port Sunlight to become a leading visitor destination with community at its heart, while also creating employment opportunities and benefitting the local economy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Bridge Inn will join the Trust\u2019s portfolio of commercial properties in Port Sunlight, which includes the Gladstone Theatre, Hulme Hall, Nettle Caf\u00e9, the Lyceum and several more, all operated by commercial tenants and providing vital income to support the charity\u2019s work.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Greene King will continue to run the Bridge Inn as leaseholders and there are no planned changes to the pub\u2019s operating model.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Any changes or developments will be shared by Port Sunlight Village Trust in conjunction with relevant stakeholders.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Greene King will continue to run the Bridge Inn as leaseholders<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":217725,"featured_media":2177891,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47995],"coauthors":[46761],"class_list":["post-2177890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retail","tag-featured-story","tag-liverpool-city-region"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - 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