A big thank you to all of you who answered the call to help clear and clean the Chequers in preparation for a future tenancy.

Thank you to everyone who helped in this task as it was a busy period for so many in the village with preparations for the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations. So many of you were tied up with that and half term holidays. I do hope you know that you did a great job coming forward and we appreciated your effort.

We made over £200 from the yard sale, with some things being taken away FOC which was helpful as well.

We are really pleased to announce that a member of the Society with specific knowledge of commercial kitchen fabrication has been instrumental in negotiations to buy the kitchen and prep room equipment.

Meanwhile the pub is checked internally daily by a committee member to satisfy the Insurance requirements for an empty property.

At long last we have the news from No 10 that pubs will be able to open again on the 4th July. Of course, there are strings attached, some of which your committee have been able to anticipate. We have been working closely with the tenants to ensure they will be able to open safely on time.

The tenants have been working hard to maximise the asset of the large garden. New tables, parasols and seating on the lawn will enable social distancing for customers to enjoy their drinks and food in small social groups. Food will mainly be prepared on the new charcoal barbeque from a new summertime menu. Crockery and glasses will be disposable and customers will be encouraged to buy their own Chequer Inn glass to take home and bring back and use again.

We received a small grant (£520) to assist with marketing and promotion enabling the purchase of a new and solid A-Frame to display posters in front of the pub. We are concerned that not all local residents use social media for information and also we wish to capture the interest of casual visitors to the village.

We have been using ZOOM for Meet Up Mondays meetings and although not universally popular it has served a purpose for some of the community. We plan to relaunch Meet Up Mondays with specially prepared mugs for those attending when we can meet up again in the Pub garden.

At the time of writing we are waiting to hear about our application for a Power to Change grant that Plunkett Funded organisations (such as ours) were invited to bid for from a £12m Power to Change COVID-19 fund.

About the COVID-19 Crisis

The CIAS Committee has been working hard over the past 6 weeks to maintain the future of your Community Pub, despite the difficulties and uncertainties thrown up by COVID-19.
For the past month we have been collaborating with our Plunkett appointed Industry Expert. We can now report that a temporary rent concession has been agreed with our tenants. However, this arrangement cannot be sustained for any length of time, so regular meetings with the tenants are planned to ensure we can all meet our commitments. Our original schedule to repay our existing loans has therefore been disrupted and this will mean the timeframe for repayment will be extended.

The pandemic, as I am sure you are aware, makes the future return to business and socialising within the industry so very uncertain. Nevertheless, getting ready for reopening in changed circumstances, and ensuring the Chequer Inn brand is intact, are part of our collaborative efforts together with the tenants, Jan and Craig.
As we have been hearing in the news a number of grants and loans have been made available to small businesses. We can report that Jan and Craig are actively pursuing all these opportunities available to them. On our behalf, The Society has been enabled to apply for grants from Power to Change as we are the recipients of funding from the More than a Pub programme. We hope that this funding will support the community activities that have been missing since lockdown, like Meet up Mondays. Please keep reviewing the website and Facebook pages for more information.

It has been a particularly stressful time for our tenants and their extended family only 8 months into opening a new business. They have informed us they will not be ‘easily deterred’ and together we hope the Chequer Inn will return to serve the Community as soon as possible.

Work on the disabled toilet has been interrupted for several weeks, but by the time you read this we hope that work on it may have recommenced.

It’s challenging times for everyone but now, more than ever, we need your support.
Whilst the pub is closed perhaps you would consider spending what you would have spent on a night out on some lotto tickets instead?

Dover District Lotto tickets are only £1 per week (but of course, you can sign up to buy more than 1 ticket!) Each ticket has a 1 in 50 chance to win with a top prize of £25,000! PLUS enter now and you could WIN 1 of 3 tasty national prizes. In addition to the £25k jackpot, you could win 12 monthly fruit & veg boxes delivered to your door. Full terms and conditions and more details of how the Lotto works is available on their website (link below)

Like us, many local good causes and charities are coping with reduced income and limited fundraising opportunities – Buying Dover Lotto tickets is a simple way you can help as 60% of ticket sales go to the local good causes – 50% to your chosen cause (hopefully Chequer Inn Ash Society) and 10% to other causes in the Dover district
If you are able to support please join the lotto today

https://www.doverlotto.com/support/chequer-inn-ash-society-limited

Every ticket you purchase makes a real difference and our community is stronger together, even when we’re apart.

We’ve launched our LOTTO page!

The Chequer Inn Ash Society (CIAS) has just been accepted as a ‘good cause’ by the Dover Lotto and we now have a dedicated page for all our supporters to buy lottery tickets and help our fundraising.
Follow the link below to buy a £1 ticket to win up to £25,000. 50% of the ticket price will come back to the CIAS, and every ticket has a 1 in 50 chance of winning a prize every week!

https://www.doverlotto.com/support/chequer-inn-ash-society-limited

WATCH BY CLICKING HERE: Actor and campaigner Neil Stuke at the PlunkettAwards celebrating the achievements of community businesses across the UK including Save The Chequer Inn, Ash tonight.