MILVERTON Community Benefit Society shareholders are being invited to a ‘thank you’ party in late August.

A ‘drinks and nibbles’ party on August 23 in The Lodge, North Street, will thank investors who have taken the society close to being able to buy the village’s last public house, The Globe Inn.

It is less than £100,000 away from its £580,000 target if an application for a Government grant succeeds.

The society wants The Globe to become a community pub when it is sold by Mark and Adele Tarry, who want to move on after running it for 18 years.

An application for £300,000 of Levelling Up funds was put on hold because of the General Election.

But a society spokesperson said: “We have a new Government firmly in place with Angela Rayner heading up the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government, which was previously the Department for Levelling Up.

“Despite the change in name of Department we are assured there is no change in the day-to-day practice of their work.

“The latest official statement we have is ‘new Ministers are extremely busy during this period and will be working through numerous decisions. We thank you for your patience and will update you on the Community Ownership Fund as soon as we can’.

“You can be assured as soon as we have news, it will be shared with you.”

The society is also planning to have representatives at a table in the monthly village market to answer villagers’ questions in person.