A LOCAL pub in Woolston that is slated to close at the end of the month could be open again by Christmas.

That's according to JW Lees, the brewery behind the Rope and Anchor, off Manchester Road in Woolston.

It was announced by the current tenants of the watering hole that the pub's final day of trading would be next Tuesday, October 31 - this is due to the pub being on the property market for three months, with no new tenant in sight.

Therefore, JW Lees took the decision to close the doors to the pub.

The original Rope and Anchor announcement read: "Notice to all our patrons;

"As the pub has been on the market for the past three months, there has been no successful takeover.

"Therefore, the brewery has decided to close its doors to the public on October 31.

"[Our] last trading day will be the October 31, until 11pm.

"[The] brewery [has] informed [us] that [the pub] will re-open in future.

"Please contact JW Lees Brewery if you have any questions or concerns regarding this matter."

The sad announcement was signed off with: "Me and the staff thank you for your custom throughout the years."

When quizzed by the Warrington Guardian about the ambitions to reopen the pub, a spokesperson for JW Lees said on October 24: "We regret that our current tenant has decided to leave the Rope and Anchor, and its last day of trading will be Tuesday, October 31.

"The pub will be closed on a temporary basis whilst we recruit a suitable new operator and our plan is to reopen the pub as soon as possible, which we anticipate will be before Christmas."