Joss Ridley started running The Compasses, Littley Green in March 2008, 3 years after Ridley’s, The Essex Brewer, was sold to Greene King.
The closing of Ridley’s brewery hit the family quite hard. At the time Joss was an accountant in London rushing around in the rat race. After some thinking time in New Zealand he realised how important his heritage was and it was then that he took the leap of leaving London to get back to what his name represented in Essex. What better pub to be the landlord of than The Compasses known as The Ridley’s Brewery Tap, a stone’s throw away from the Hartford End brewery.
Reflecting on 10 years of ownership, Joss said: “I took on a wonderfully traditional pub and with it came some loyal punters and brilliant staff who gave me a warm welcome. Thanks to a combination of love and commitment for the place we are still doing very well having introduced a variety of annual beer festivals and athletic events and five B&B rooms in 2012.
“I just want to say thank you to everyone for making me feel part of the community over the last 10 years, thank you for your sense of humour along the way and for your help making the pub the success that it is. Of course, none of this would be possible without my incredibly loyal and amazing staff, some of whom have been with me from the start!”