The new landlady of a controversial March pub has said she is looking to get the pub back on track – starting with a big revamp.

The Coachmakers Arms, on Station Road, came under criticism recently by licensing officer for Fenland, PC Phil Richardson, who said the management of the pub was “shambolic” following its re-opening.

PC Richardson also criticised licensee Stephen Knott and premises supervisor Jonathan Davies, saying the pair had “no control over the pub.”

Since then, Mr Knott and Mr Davies have left, and former barmaid, Maria Fance, has taken over as landlady.

She said: “We’ve been involved at the pub for a while, but we started to notice that there were a lot of untoward things going on, and that the manager was mistreating his staff.

“Some of the bar workers walked out. The manager didn’t know what he was doing, if I’m honest.”

Ms Fance has vowed to restore the reputation of the pub, and aims to do so by revamping its interior and re-launching it.

“We’re going to have a big revamp and completely change the place,” she said.

“We’ve kept too really strong barmaids and brought one back. I’m working on a temporary license at the moment, but I should have my permanent license in four weeks.”