Pub of the Week: The Green Squirrel, Haslingden, Rossendale

We spoke to the owner of The Green Squirrel on Manchester Road to hear about the history of owning the pub, and what makes it a popular place.

Please introduce yourself:

"My name is Jim Davies, but three of us own the pub as part-owners, including Ben Greenwood. I bought a share of the pub eight years ago from the previous owner.

"Before it was The Green Squirrel the pub was called The Crown, but that shut and it went to auction after being up for sale for a while in December 2011.

"It was a mess and had a complete refurb, opening in July 2012. It was run by different managers over the period until I bought a share in 2016.

"When we shut in lockdown we had a total refurbishment and now it is run by our manager Kim.

"We used to own The Holden Arms for 18 months but the credit crunch meant it started off well but then tapered off, so we gave it back as a lease rather than a freehouse like The Green Squirrel."

What are some challenges you have experienced at the pub?

"COVID-19 was a struggle but as we are all self-employed and there was nothing else to do at the time, a refurbishment seemed right as the place was ready for it.

"If you are going to do a complete refurbishment like we did the only time you could do that amount of work without interrupting trade was a time like the pandemic so at least we had some time on our hands.

"We just took the opportunity whilst it was there and did a £30,000 refurbishment."

What is a nice memory after the pub re-opened?

"Re-opening without COVID-19 restrictions was great. When we opened the World Cup was on and we were outside with a marquee with table service and not many people could stand up, so that was a nightmare.

"Being able to see everyone again and get back to normal was a highlight."

You used to sell food, why did you decide to stop?

"It wasn't that it didn't work, our manager Kim was doing the food but staff wanted more hours. 

"We just didn't have enough staff to offer food but we are not ruling it out for the future. We need to prioritise as the pub does well as it is, but it would be nice to do it again in the future."

What is the location like?

"The beer garden we have is a bonus as there aren't any others really in town so it is a great sun trap on a nice day.

"It's also noticeable how much busier it is when the sun's out as people enjoy the garden."

Do you host any events?

"There is something on most nights such as quiz night on Monday, pool night on Tuesday, ladies' darts Wednesday and on Friday and Saturday we have a DJ.

"The pool and darts nights are great because you meet people from all over such as Ramsbottom and people from other pubs as they are within that league so you get people saying 'Wow it's alright here init?'."

And most importantly, do you enjoy running The Green Squirrel?

"Yes I do, it is a good laugh and although it can be stressful we have a good team who set boundaries and stick to them."

So, what do the customers think?

Howard Page, who left a five star Google review, wrote: "Great choice of drinks and fantastic live music!"

Joseph Buckley wrote: "Good local beers offered. Rowdy and lively crowd. Sometimes quiet and friendly people who you can chat to.

"There is a pool table which will often be free to use. Small pub but plently of space to sit down and is actually surprisingly big inside. Ran by good honest folk."