New managers take the helm at popular Wigan pub

The new team in charge at a popular Wigan pub is proving the saying about new brooms sweeping clean is not always true.

That’s because Lynn and Steve Salter, who have just spent their first week behind the bar running The Crown Hotel in New Springs, say they intend to maintain everything that makes the boozer popular.

New Springs residents Lynn and Steve got the keys to the Wigan Road watering hole after popular previous landlord Kent Winrow stepped down after a decade in charge.

And they intend to keep Kent’s recipe for success while lengthening opening hours and offering food.

Lynn said: “We’ve never run a pub before. The opportunity arose when speaking to Kent. He said he was coming out and Steve and I discussed it, met him, asked a few questions and we decided to take it.

“Years ago I said I would like to run a B&B but we haven’t dreamed of running a pub, it was quite a spur-of-the-moment decision.

“We’ve been coming in on a regular basis for the past few months. We’ve got to know the regulars and have guaranteed the only change will be for the better.

“The main thing is to keep it as a traditional pub. I think of it as looking like a quaint village pub. We’re not going to make it look like a state-of-the-art nightclub or anything like that.

“In the winter months we will get the open fires roaring and we want to get into the beer garden as well and put things in for children to do to attract families.”

Lynn and Steve have previously done a variety of jobs, with Lynn having run a sandwich shop and worked in care and as a mortgage adviser while Steve has been helping out his son-in-law’s plumbing business having done 34 years at the bakery on Cale Lane.

They intend to run The Crown Hotel as a family affair with daughters Katie and Natasha both helping out during the first week.

Lynn and Steve have already introduced Sunday lunches, with their Mother’s Day menu going down a storm, and are putting a new tap for Foster’s in while getting the first of the three cask handpulls ready to serve real ale once more.

They also plan to make the distinctive white-fronted pub beside the canal more of a community hub with plans for charity events, particularly causes close to their hearts such as battling against dementia and cancer.

They also want men’s pool and darts and dominoes teams to play alongside the current ladies darts and dominoes side and also want to introduce quiz nights and bingo fund-raisers.

The Crown Hotel has also been a focal point for local November 5 celebrations and Lynn says New Springs residents will still be able to flock there for Bonfire Night.

Find out more by searching for the pub on Facebook.