Background

Friends of The Ivy was formed in 2019 as an official channel for communication between the owners of The Ivy (at the time Wadworth Brewery) and the residents of Heddington. We succeeded in providing a focus on key issues raised by the community and shared our concerns with the appropriate contacts in Wadworth’s.

Understandably, official Friends of The Ivy activity diminished over the course of the pandemic as the hospitality industry struggled with national lockdowns, but the group continued to exist.

Friends of The Ivy Today

In May 2024, Wadworth announced its intention to sell The Ivy, and Friends of The Ivy was resurrected on a much firmer footing. The current focus of Friends of The Ivy is to retain the pub as a community venue for the benefit of the residents of Heddington, and Wiltshire as a whole.

On 3 September 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) registered Friends of The Ivy Limited as a Community Benefit Society (What is a CBS?). Friends of The Ivy Limited is therefore registered with, but not authorised by, the FCA and operates according to a set of agreed rules that are based on the ‘model rules’ suggested by Plunkett UK.

Currently Friends of The Ivy is a run by a Steering Committee of volunteers. Once we have a formal membership (that is, people who have purchased Community Shares) the Steering Committee will be replaced by a Management Committee elected from and by the members.