A BINGLEY road will be closed this weekend as major work starts on an historic pub shut since the Boxing Day floods.

The 17th-century Old White Horse Inn on the corner of Old Main Street and Ireland Bridge, Bingley, was left under water after the River Aire burst its banks, but owners Enterprise Inns have been carrying out major restorations and hope it will be up and running by the end of next month.

The Grade II listed pub, the oldest pub in Bingley and once owned by the Order of Knights of St John of Jerusalem,was originally built as a coaching inn.

Old Main Street will be closed to vehicles from midnight today until midnight on Sunday, according to an order issued by Bradford Council “to enable maintenance works to the Old White Horse”.

Ward Councillor David Heseltine (Bingley, Con) said while the closure might cause minor disruption, it was a worthwhile project.

“It’s on a gateway into Bingley and the sooner it gets back into use, vibrant and active, the better and I hope that these repairs are part of a deal to seal its future,” he said.

Terry Brown, chairman of Bingley Town Council, said the landmark pub had changed hands several times in recent years.

“It’s good to see it being restored and it will be a great property for Bingley.

“I’ve heard that they will be painting the outside and the only way they could do that was to close the road,” he said.

Bingley Chamber of Trade president Howard Martin said he had fond memories of drinking in the Old White Horse.

“I had my first ever pint in there during my Bingley Grammar School days – as did many of my classmates.

“That was back then and the Old White Horse was the ‘in-place’ and used to be heaving.

“We’d start there and end up at the Oakwood Hall nightclub on Park Road.

“And I’ll be one of the first in for a refreshing half when the Old White Horse re-opens – that’ll be great.”

“It did get very badly flooded, but it’s a nice location and it’s fantastic to see it being refurbished.”

A spokesman for Enterprise Inns said: “The restriction of local access on Millgate had been requested to allow us to carry out external decoration work to the Old White Horse as part of the restoration work required as a result of the Boxing Day flooding.

“We’re pleased to announce that this work is nearing completion.

“This iconic Bingley pub will reopen towards the end of September to trade under an experienced new operator. We will reveal more details about their plans for the pub in due course.”

A spokesman for All Saint’s Church, also on Old Main Street, said luckily there were no weddings taking place this weekend.