Celebrating Heritage

The following short article featured in the Hereford Times in September 2024, exploring The Oxford’s important contribution to Kington’s heritage - past, present and future.


September is Heritage Month, and we’re raising a glass to an institution that shaped Britain: the pub. Each one has a story to tell – the particular smell built up over centuries of woodsmoke, tobacco, spilt beer (and worse); the mismatched furniture; the random collections of objects decorating the walls. The events from their pasts make up these buildings’ histories, but the atmosphere created by this history is their heritage.

When the Community Interest Company Open Arms Kington (OAK) bought the Oxford Arms pub in 2023 to transform it into a community space, it had already been shaped by dozens of landlords, thousands of customers and centuries of changing trends. Annie Gamble, who has been documenting its story, says “the building is full of reminders of its past: as a coaching inn connecting Kington to London and beyond, a centre of Georgian high-society entertaining cultural figures like Lord Byron, an indoor sheep-shearing competition venue – and for Kington residents past and present, a much loved local.”

However, listed buildings are notoriously difficult to maintain. The Oxford Arms sits at the heart of Kington’s town conservation area, which Historic England recently reported to be in “very bad” condition, and “deteriorating”. “A big reason for buying The Oxford was to repair and conserve one of Kington’s most-loved landmark buildings,” says OAK chairperson Judith Gardner. “We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but it’s worth it to secure the pub’s future as a welcoming, vibrant community space.”

Now, the OAK team are adding a new layer to The Oxford Arms’ heritage, bringing it into its next era as a community “pub and hub”. The team have hosted over 50 community events in the pub’s barn and courtyard, as well as regular weekend openings for their pop-up bar and café, while waiting on the outcome of their restoration grant application. Their recent Heritage weekends reconnected the town with the story of its droving past, and showed how it shaped the Kington we see today. Having been a main character of Kington’s past, the team are ensuring that The Oxford will continue to play an important role in its future, and continue to contribute to the town’s rich heritage.

The OAK team would like to thank the Architectural Heritage Fund and the Heritage Trust Network for their support on the heritage aspects of the project.