An ambitious husband-and-wife team have pledged to turn a recently refurbished pub into a town's best.

The New Chimneys on Godinton Park, Ashford, enjoyed a months-long revamp after lockdown following investment from the Punch pub company.

Landlord Dean Pryce ran the site from June 2021 but has now been replaced by Shona and Rick Bailey, who made the move into hospitality following the pandemic.

It is the second pub the duo have taken under their wing, having transformed The Golden Arrow in Sandgate, Folkestone.

"Coming out of Covid, we wanted to do something different, so we took over The Golden Arrow and absolutely fell in love with it," Mr Bailey said.

"After that went so well, when the opportunity to work on The New Chimneys came up we simply couldn't refuse.

"We lived in Godinton Park for decades, so it was always our local until we moved towards Folkestone – and we wanted to bring it back to the community, which deserves to have the best pub in Ashford."

The couple had worked in hospitality separately until they started a family, and jumped at the chance to take on The New Chimneys – despite moving in just days before one of the busiest times of the year.

"We properly started just before Christmas after making some changes, so it has been very busy indeed," explained Mr Bailey, 47.

"But we have had great feedback from the locals here, and some great results. We brought in a new kitchen team on the first of this month, and we're focusing on getting the kitchen running how it should be.

"The Golden Arrow has a fantastic team which can run itself day-to-day, and we want to bring The New Chimneys up to the same standard with a great team around us."

With a tenancy for five years and option to extend under Punch, the Baileys are keen to ensure their first business is not left to the side.

"I do just want to emphasise that we are not leaving The Golden Arrow, we have absolutely massive plans," added Mr Bailey.

"At the beginning of the year we had a big festival at the front car park, and we're hoping to do the same thing for the King's coronation – we're currently planning all our yearly events."