The site of the old Walk the Dog pub in Chatteris has been barren for the past year after previous owner Nigel Marsh was ousted by the brewery.

Since then it has fallen into a state of disrepair following a tough winter in which frosts caused pipes to burst and result in extensive damage inside.

But now Chatteris couple David and Tracy Linley have taken over the lease for the Pound Road venue and have vowed to give it a fresh start, taking it back to the days when it was a “good community pub with good beer”.

Calling the pub by its old name, The Ship, the husband and wife team hope to specialise in good quality real ales and build it into a strong community hub where residents can meet, socialise and form groups to play sports and games such as darts and poker.

“My husband and I used to drink and play poker in there,” Mrs Linley said.

“I have been involved in pub management before but haven’t run my own pub before.

“It was always a nice and friendly local pub, so I thought I’d like it to run it and that it would be nice.”

The 35-year-old said the pub would need a “fresh start” after Mr Marsh’s eviction by Punch Taverns in 2011 when it claimed he had not assigned the lease correctly to allow his son to run the premises.

“You can get a stigma attached to places but this will run by completely new people, so hopefully we will run a good community pub with good beer,” Mrs Linley added.

If the renovation works can be completed in time, she hopes to open The Ship on August 10.