A landlord has described his grand plans to transform a 'bomb site' pub in Bucks into a thriving family business.

The Beech Tree pub on Amersham Road in Hazlemere re-opened on the August Bank Holiday weekend after sitting empty for over two years. 

Landlord Jason Noble, 51, said the journey from an abandoned pub to a bustling venue, which attracted huge queues on its opening weekend, was even more dramatic than it may have seemed.

"The place was like a bomb site when we first went in. When you opened the door to go upstairs, it was like you needed a gas mask.

"My dad was a builder though, so I didn't react as badly as other people might have - I just wanted to get on with it and put in the work to get it up and running properly again." 

Jason opened the pub last month alongside his business partner Chris Lewis, his daughter Lily and her partner Archie, as a part of the InOnePlace entrepreneurial platform that Jason describes as "LinkedIn on steroids".

He had never owned a pub before but has big plans to transform The Beech Tree into a community hub, hosting a range of events, performances and attractions alongside providing classic pub fare. 

There are already plans to launch a range of events, just a taste of which were on show at the bank holiday celebration, including but not limited to all-you-can-eat weekend brunch, exercise classes, live music and sports and children’s entertainment.

READ MORE: 'Spare a thought for local businesses' - Chip owner's plea as industry struggles

Jason said: “Most pubs don’t make any money during the daytime, so we want to really maximise the building’s space all throughout the day. We want to be the go-to place for everything from coffee mornings to Muay Thai classes.

“Things like this will hopefully set us apart from other pubs in the area – most of them are quite functional and don’t always have fun stuff going on.”

Jason is also committed to listening to his customers and designing the pub accordingly. Some people were enthusiastic about the prospect of watching live sports at the venue, while others he spoke to were very opposed to the idea, so he is now in the process of separating the interior into different sections for patrons with diverging interests.

The Beech Tree's grand opening on the August Bank Holiday weekend, which featured attractions including a magician and bouncy castle, certainly seemed to spell a bright future for the venue, drawing in what Jason’s daughter Lily, 20, described as an “absolutely mental” number of customers.

She said: “On opening weekend, we had a queue at the bar going all the way out into the garden for hours. This last weekend (September 2 – 3) was a bit more of a test because it was a lot quieter, but the amount of people who showed up was similar.

"I think the sunshine has helped, but there is so much local support.”