A NEW pub hoping to be a breath of fresh air for the community has opened its doors.

The Tap and Tun pub on Newgate Street, in Bishop Auckland, was filled with pub-goers on Sunday as the team celebrated their successful launch. The pub is part of the Amber Tavern chain – a company which tried to secure a site in the town centre for several years and want the new business to be a modern community pub.

Tap and Tun products include cask ales, craft beers and a range of gins and cocktails.

Pub manager, Janice Shields said: “We want to bring something new, we hope the pub will be a breath of fresh air for people in Bishop Auckland.

“We have a wide range of gins and some beautiful cocktails which we’re hoping will be really popular.

“The pub will cater to sports fans as we will show all the football, horse racing and boxing.

“We would encourage people to come to the pub because the bar is competitively priced and the decor of the place is lovely.”

The pub stands at the the former site of discount retailer Poundworld which closed last summer and the old Dorothy Perkins next door, formerly the McIntyre shoe shop.

The space has been mostly unoccupied since the fashion retailer moved up the street.

The new pub was welcomed by the community and will trade alongside other Amber Tavern chain pubs in County Durham including The Brewers Arms in Spennymoor and The Whistle Blower in Consett.