A village pub near Grantham says it is looking at opening on a Monday after Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a raft of measures to help the hospitality sector.

Among them was a scheme where in August the government will fund half the cost of a meal at a pub or restaurant, giving a discount of up to ten pounds.

There were also measures concerning apprentices and the retaining of furloughed workers.

The jobs package, announced yesterday, came as many pubs re-opened at the weekend.

Among them, were the Green Man at Ropsley, which officially opened to the public on Sunday, a day after it staged a 'private' event to thank the village and other supporters.

Landlord Phil Docherty told says Saturday's complimentary bbq was well-attended by they wished to thank for their support during the lockdown.

The pub was full on the Saturday, but Sunday's trade was only 60-70 per cent what it would normally have been pre-lockdown.

Phil told Nub News: "We think people will still be apprehensive about dining out, especially in the first couple of weeks, so although we're seeing people pre-booking (always advised), we're probably only seeing us at that 60/70% capacity for most lunches and dinners at the moment so we'd encourage those customers holding back to book with us sooner rather than later."

"With the latest social distancing guidelines, we've had to lose about 20 seating places internally, but we're lucky in the fact our garden and covered decking capacity can accommodate another 70 outside.

"That of course is weather-dependent as people don't tend to come out for that type of occasion if there's grey clouds on the horizon."

The Green Man opens from 11am Tuesday-Sunday and serves food all day right through until 9pm, even on Sundays which Phil says is a point of difference versus most other restaurants and pubs in the area.

Phil continued: "With the announcement of the Chancellor's voucher scheme, it's highly likely we'll also open on Mondays in August too.

"As for the VAT cut, we're still assessing how to pass as much value back to our customers as possible, so watch this space for upcoming offers.

"With regards to the back to work incentives, we've still got half our team on furlough (mainly the part-time team) so that will certainly help us begin bringing them back. He added: "The apprenticeship support will inevitably assist us too as we've already successfully had 2 apprenticeships completed amongst the team in the last year or so and we're keen to continue offering such placements."