THE LANDLORDS of a historic Ferndown pub are calling time after two years because of plans to locate a transit site for travellers nearby.

Landlord Mark Lindsell is leaving the Old Thatch in Wimborne Road West despite increasing beer sales by 160 per cent, he said on the pub’s Facebook page.

He added that the “threat” of the site at Uddens Wood was a large part of the decision to end the tenancy.

In the post, Mr Lindsell wrote: “It is with deep sadness and regret that, despite our great efforts and hard work over the past two years, we find ourselves with no option but to end our tenancy and call last orders at the Old Thatch.

“We have, without doubt, turned the business around and have hopefully provided you all with some good experiences and happy memories; we certainly have many fond memories to take with us.”

The pub belongs to Enterprise Inns, who Mr Lindsell said has not provided the pub with “help and assistance” when required.

“They had promised us that when we took over the pub, they would renew the well-worn thatched roof and do other works but these obviously never happened and unfortunately, due to the impending threat of the traveller/gypsy site at Uddens Woods, we chose not to invest any further in the development of the pub and gardens, as this would have been money down the drain if the site went ahead,” he said.

“This truly hurt us as we took on the pub four months before this threat came to light.”

A new tenant has been found to take on the tenancy at the pub, and Mr Lindsell said: “We will do our utmost to ensure that the transition is a smooth one, with very little disruption to the running and level of service that you [the customers] have come to expect of the Old Thatch.”