The Chequers pub in Felsted is on the hunt for a brand new licensee to take over

Admiral Taverns, the UK’s leading community pub group with c.1,365 pubs across England, Scotland and Wales, is on the hunt for ambitious and experienced individuals – or couples – to run The Chequers in the picturesque village of Felsted to ensure it can remain at the heart of the local area for generations to come.

As part of the deal with the new licensee who takes on the pub, Admiral Taverns are looking to invest approximately £320,000 for a major refurbishment of the pub. Internally, the pub will include new flooring, fixtures and fittings to deliver a fresh and stylish interior.

Externally, the pub will include brand new signage and lighting in the beer garden, creating a space for locals to come together in the village pub. Despite its rural charm, the pub sits right next to surrounding towns including Braintree, Chelmsford and Saffron Walden. It also has excellent connectivity via the A120, with easy access to Stansted airport.

The Chequers offers a strong food offering for every occasion, from coffee in the morning to dinner and drinks in the evening. The bar also offers a well-curated range of drinks including premium draught, wines and spirits, cask ales options.

If you’re an experienced hospitality professional, the pub offers an exciting, unique opportunity to run your own business autonomously, with the backing of one of the UK’s leading community pub companies. It also gives entrepreneurs the platform to bring people together as part of an institution that is often a lifeline for communities up and down the country. With the pub and brewing industries alone employing more than one million people and contributing more than £34 million each year to the economy, there is so much potential.

The current opportunity sits within Admiral’s Leased & Tenanted division.

Ceri Radford, Head of Recruitment at Admiral Taverns, commented: “We have a fantastic opportunity available at The Chequers in Felsted and we would love to hear from anyone, who would be interested in taking over the pub. We believe in investing in our pubs to ensure their long-term sustainable futures, and we’re looking for an individual or couple who wants to work with us on this. The pub has so much potential it’s very exciting.

“Over the years, we have worked hard to build an industry-leading recruitment process – which was acclaimed in 2025 at the National Innovation and Training Awards – and take great pride in our people-first approach. We are committed to matching the right person to The Chequers to ensure that they can continue serving and supporting their communities for years to come.”

Following the recruitment process, Admiral Taverns offers all its publicans extensive expertise and support to help maximise a pub’s potential, from operations and marketing to property and training. Its comprehensive, highly proactive approach to licensee training has earnt the Group top spot in the 2025 annual independent licensee sentiment tracker for the UK’s leased and tenanted pub sector, with publicans voting Admiral ‘partner of choice’, scoring 7.5/10 on its staff and training capabilities.

Mike Dove, Licensee at an Admiral pub, The Three Horseshoes in Witney, said: “My business partner, Tommy, and I have loved every minute of running our own pub since taking over two years ago. No two days are the same and becoming such an integral part of the surrounding community has been a real highlight for us. In June last year we were delighted to be named as the British Institute of Innkeeping’s ‘Licensees of the Year’ which wouldn’t have been possible without the exceptional support that we have received from the team at Admiral Taverns. Despite the wider industry challenges, our fantastic Business Development Manager and the broader group have stood by our side and given us the tools and opportunities to thrive for which we are incredibly grateful. We look forward to all that’s to come for our wonderful little pub and would encourage anyone thinking about taking the leap to get in touch with the team at Admiral.”

Please call Admiral’s recruitment team on 01244 321 171 to find out more information. You can view the pub on Admiral’s website here: Chequers, Felsted – Admiral Taverns

Notes to Editors

Admiral Taverns (“Admiral”) is the UK’s number one community pub group. Headquartered in Chester, the Group operates a national estate of c.1,365 predominantly wet-led community pubs. Admiral’s unique operational approach has earnt industry recognition with the Group winning Best Community Pub Operator at the 2024 Publican Awards, whilst also being shortlisted for Best Partnership Pub Company (501+ Sites). In 2019, 2016 and 2013, Admiral Taverns won Best Leased and Tenanted Pub Company at the Publican Awards and ranked highly commended as Best Community Pub Operator in 2017. The Group has also been consistently highly rated by licensees in the industry’s independent annual Tenant Track survey, exceeding the scores of all its national peers and most recently it won ‘Best Recruitment Strategy’ at the British Institute of Innkeeping’s National Innovation and Training Awards in November 2025.

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