Yorkshire community pub operators Simon Woodcock and Richard Hepplestone are expanding their estate to 10 sites by taking the lease on The Upton Arms in Upton near Pontefract with Star Pubs.
A £200,000 joint investment starts this week to transform the pub into a top-notch family-friendly local specialising in sports and entertainment complete with a new outside area and a revamped games room that is best in class in the vicinity. The capex project is Woodcock and Hepplestone’s second with Star in eighteen months, following a £198,000 revamp of The Black Bull in Ecclesfield in summer 2024.
The external works will renovate the outside of the building and turn a disused paved space into a 36-seater outdoor area complete with new furniture, festoon lighting and planting. A dramatic internal makeover will give The Upton Arms a smart contemporary décor as well as making it more warm and welcoming. The extensive works encompass everything from redecorating to new furniture, flooring and soft furnishings. To cater for all, The Upton Arms will have a spacious bar with cosy corners and a new stage for entertainers, a comfortable lounge, and a dedicated sports zone. This will be kitted out with a new pool table, two halo darts boards with electronic scoring and big screens showing Sky and TNT Sports. A function room – accommodating 100 guests – that can be booked for gatherings and parties will have a mini facelift, too.
Woodcock and Hepplestone – who have nearly 40 years’ experience in pubs between them – are now on the lookout for further sites within a 45-minute drive of Barnsley. Says Hepplestone: “Our focus is on wet led locals surrounded by chimney pots. We’ll consider freeholds but our expansion will be driven by leasing. It removes a lot of the pressure when there’s no major building maintenance to fund plus we get very good support from Star Pubs. Whilst we’ve focused on wet only sites to date, we’ve recently started dipping our toes into the water with food but can’t envisage taking a pub where it accounts for more than 30% of sales. We’ve built up our back-office systems for expansion, however, we’ve not got a target or timeline for the number of new sites – it all depends on what comes to market. Taking on a pub is all about the financials for us – they have to stack up. We were delighted with the returns on our previous refurbishment with Star, which has given us the confidence to invest again with them at The Upton Arms.”
Adds Star Pubs’ investment manager for Yorkshire Len Jackson : “Simon and Richard are passionate about reviving traditional locals. Their expertise combined with Star’s financial backing are just what’s needed to relaunch The Upton Arms and put it back on the map.”
