Three Acre Brewery pursues micro-pub and taproom plans
East Sussex-based Three Acre Brewery has plans to turn two sites, one in Heathfield and one in Uckfield, into taprooms and micro-pubs.
Cask ale experts
The award-winning Sussex brewery, which was founded in 2019 and is well-known for its cask ales, has plans for the High Street venue in Heathfield to be named The Storehouse. The site will include an upgraded interior, a small service area and utilise space outside on Cherwell Road for bistro tables. The Storehouse is anticipated to open later this year, subject to council approval.
Three Acre Brewery is also currently in the process of opening a separate micro-pub in an old railway signal box in Uckfield. While planning permission has been secured for this site and it is now legally a pub with its premises licence approved and building control plans already approved, the historic site is still being repaired by Uckfield Town Council and is delayed due to local authority timelines.
As such, the site in Heathfield is due to open possibly before the Uckfield site this year. A planning statement submitted with the latest application, in Heathfield, said: “The change of use will provide employment for people in the local area, specifically younger people who may have less work experience. It will also allow the premises to generate an income with reinvestment of the profits into the premises for continued maintenance and preservation following a period of neglect.”
Local support
The plans for each of the independent brewery-owned Sussex-based venues have received significant backing from local residents, with many letters of support submitted to the local councils boosting the applications.
The openings have been welcomed by crowdfunders who initially backed plans for the signal box. The brewery has assured that their free beer tokens will also be redeemable at the Heathfield venue as well.
Community-focused
Three Acre Brewery head brewer Jamie Newton said: “We’ve had our roots in Heathfield since the very beginning. Our plan is to make the Storehouse a hub for music, quizzes, talks, exhibitions and more and we are really excited about the opportunity and what it can offer to local people.”
During the pandemic, Three Acre Brewery built its reputation among local residents after it delivered beer to hundreds of houses in and around the East Sussex area. The brewery’s horsebox bar can also be found every year at Le Marche, the village’s Anglo-French market that takes place each August bank holiday.
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