A TEACHER  has quit her job after almost a decade, to take over her village pub.

Lydia Roberts, from Wadborough, handed in her notice in June after eight years, to embark on a new journey as a pub-owner . The former teacher, who worked for Abbey Park First and Nursery School in Pershore, purchased The Mason Arms, in Wadborough. She called the establishment the "centre of the community", but said due to the pandemic, it had remained shut for the last 16 months. 

Mrs Roberts said: "We've all had a bit of a different time over the last couple years, for obvious reasons, and it gave me a chance to reflect. When the opportunity came along, I had no intention of buying the pub - but the owner had closed it since the start of lockdown so I thought I'd at least have a look around.

"I'm really passionate about education and I always will be, but when I walked in to the bar area, I was soon moving around furniture and imagining all the changes I wanted to make". 

Mrs Roberts, former head of Early Years at the school, said the decision was both "thrilling" and "fulfilling". She said: "It was a hard decision and not one I took lightly, but it was simmering away in my head and I thought if I don't do this I'm going to regret it."

She added: "The children and staff at the school are fantastic. I was pinged by the NHS app just before the end of the term - so I had to zoom my class to say goodbye. I was gutted as I'd worked throughout the entire pandemic to then be affected the last three days before summer holidays". 

The venture is not Mrs Roberts' first experience within the industry, after previously running the bar, Bottles, on Friar Street, the location of the now closed Cafe Rouge. 

She said: "Life is too short and you've got to take risks sometimes. It's all an adventure."

The Mason Arms, which is currently undergoing "exhausting" renovations, is due to open on August 28. She said: "The kitchen and cellar have been completely renewed. We're re-opening the beer garden, which hasn't been in use for the last 10 years - but I don't mind a good challenge and I love hard work."