Star Pubs has completed its biggest Just Add Talent (JAT) refurbishment of the year, bringing its estate of managed operator pubs to 220 sites.
The £750,000 investment in The Horse & Jockey at Waddington – which had been closed since 2018 – has transformed it into a top-quality family friendly local specialising in sports and entertainment and serving good affordable food.
The project is the fourth major JAT makeover that Star Pubs has undertaken in the final quarter of 2025. It follows a total spend of £1.59m on converting Gibsons at York, The New Pin at Chellaston and The Canterbury Tales at Canterbury into managed operator pubs. Three of the four schemes reopened long-term closed pubs. In all Star has added 32 new JAT pubs to its estate in 2025, at a typical refurbishment cost of £255,000 per site, creating an estimated 200 new jobs.
As at all JAT pubs, Star Pubs has aimed to cater for the whole community at The Horse & Jockey, with different zones enabling customers to simultaneously enjoy a range of occasions. The Horse & Jockey has a spacious bar, two lounge/dining areas and a dedicated games room kitted out with halo darts, a brand-new pool table and screens showing Sky & TNT Sports.
A smart new internal décor has brought out all the historic pub’s character and charm, restoring timber and flagstone floors and installing a log burner in the fireplace, whilst upgrading The Horse & Jockey throughout. The outside overhaul has carefully renovated the exterior of the Grade II listed building and developed a 130-seater walled courtyard garden.
Says Star Pubs operations director, Mick Howard: “We’ve had tremendous success with our Just Add Talent revamps this year. We know what works and look to make the most of every pub, ensuring it has the right facilities for its local community. Customers love the combination of a great looking pub that offers something for everyone, and our new sites are flying. The low-cost, low-risk, high support Just Add Talent model is proving attractive with would-be pub operators in the current market, and there has been particularly high demand for our investment sites.”
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