FURTHER details have been revealed about the reimagining of a Grade II-listed pub that has been taken over by an arts organisation.

The ‘stable bar’ at the Farmer’s Arms is set to open mid-July.

And the site at Spark Bridge, near Ulverston, is being given an expanded offering by Grizedale Arts, which purchased the pub late last year.

It is being restored into a working pub and bed-and-breakfast.

The much-loved site is also set to feature a workshop, meeting space, museum, community arts centre and pop-up shops.

Outdoor spaces will be redeveloped to host varied community activities and to grow produce for use in the inn.

Emma Sumner, valley project manager at Grizedale Arts, emphasised the importance of the pub to the community.

“Everybody has a story about it,” she said.

“All those celebrations, all those rites of passage that were celebrated in this space.”

Miss Sumner said Grizedale Arts purchased the site from Star Pubs and Bars for around £420,000 last year.

More than £300,000 of this money was investment from the community. A loan from The Architectural Heritage Fund was also acquired.

She highlighted the consultation element of Grizedale Arts’ plans, with the project being discussed with and shaped by the community.

“We could just see it as an opportunity to reinvent a space that had declined over the years,” she said.

“We wanted to get involved because we knew the community had a concern about the future of this space.

“We could see the potential but we could see what could happen if we didn’t take it on.”

Miss Sumner said there had been a ‘real fear’ in the community that the site would be taken on by developers and used for an undesired purpose, such as second homes.

On Friday, Matthew Mckeague, chief executive of The Architectural Heritage Fund, and Asha Karbhari, the fund’s investment manager, were shown around the site.