A pub restaurant in Bramfield is set to convert its restaurant into a full-size pop-up charity book shop to raise funds for the Pear Tree Fund.
The Queen’s Head selected the Pear Tree Fund as its chosen charity just under five years ago, and hopes the bookshop proceeds will tip the pub’s running total of funds raised for the charity over the £10,000 line.
The pub also recently held a musical bingo night, which raised £680.50 and took the total so far to £9,414.
The pop-up bookshop is the latest in a line of events that The Queen’s Head at Bramfield has arranged for the Pear Tree Fund, which have included a fashion show, food tasting quiz evening, golf day sponsorships and even running a marathon. The restaurant will be laid out with over 2,500 titles and categories will include fiction, biography, arts and craft, history, natural history, travel, sport, gardening, children’s books and cookery, as well as an antiquarian section and books signed by the author.
Kate Wood, owner of the Queen’s Head, said: “We are delighted that we are able to continue supporting the Pear Tree Fund, which does the most amazing work for patients with life-limiting illnesses and their families and carers. In addition to this, the charity also supports the recently bereaved, people with mental health support needs and more. They’re an integral part of our community and the work they do is breath-taking.
“It was such a difficult time for charities during the pandemic, followed by the cost-of-living crisis, so it has been challenging to raise these funds but we are keen to do whatever we can to help. We now have our eyes firmly on the target of reaching £10,000 for the charity, which would be a real achievement. Hospitality has had a rough ride in the past few years, with over 500 pubs closing their doors for good in England alone last year. Many pubs, however, provide a vital fundraising lifeline to charities just like the Pear Tree Fund and we’re eternally grateful to our wonderful customers who continue to support our work.
“Our customers have been amazingly generous in donating all these books to populate the bookstore, and now we implore people to come along and buy a reading bargain or two!”
Jane Edwards, one of the Pear Tree Fund’s founders, said: “We are incredibly grateful to the Queen’s Head for the fantastic support they continue to show to the charity.
“We are also delighted that the pub will also be converting their restaurant into a full-size charity second-hand bookshop. It’s certainly an unusual idea that has got people talking and really will be quite an undertaking by Kate and her team at the pub.”
The event is due to take place from Monday 18 to Wednesday 20 March and the bookshop will be open from 12 – 8pm. Visitors perusing the books will be able to sit and relax with a coffee or a pint, alongside a slice of cake, of which the pub is also donating 50% of the sales to the fund.