A community pub in Suffolk has won CAMRA's Rural Pub of the Year award after also featuring in a national beer guide.

The Racehorse Inn in Westhall near Halesworth won the award, with co-founder of the pub Steve Gray, accepting the award.

He said: "From humble beginnings three and a half years ago, to Rural Pub of the Year is pretty good.

"We started by running a bar at the village hall once a month, then formed a committee focused on trying to buy the pub."

Beccles & Bungay Journal: Community Pub, The Racehorse Inn, has won Rural Pub of the Year. Credit: The Racehorse InnCommunity Pub, The Racehorse Inn, has won Rural Pub of the Year. Credit: The Racehorse Inn (Image: The Racehorse Inn)

Funding to buy the pub was obtained through profits from the pop-up bar, as well as funding from the Government's community fund.

The pub was also featured in the Good Beer Guide this year, which gave them a boost and saw 'pub tickers', those that like to visit pubs featured in the list, visit the pub from as far as America.

He continued: "When we started we were just buying a small 36-pint barrel of ale, but this week alone, we've got through two 72-pint barrels."

The pub currently has around 30 employees in total, with most being volunteers from the community, offering paid work to local teenagers.