The Fox and Goose
Polly Checkland Harding
The Fox and Goose was rescued from closure in 2014, when 300 Hebden Bridge locals clubbed together to both own and run the traditional boozer. One of the few community-owned pubs in Yorkshire, the Fox and Goose co-operative has since been runner up for Yorkshire Pub of the Year and has won the CAMRA Good Beer Guide Halifax and Calderdale Pub of the Year 2019. A popular community hub, the pub welcomes all comers, including both walkers and dogs. It has one bar and three rooms with flagstone floors, an open fire and a dartboard. There are floral planters out front and a blackboard with a list of beers that’s framed by fairy lights inside. Built into the hillside, the pub has incredible views across the valley (particularly during sunsets), and a newly rebuilt and extended beer garden for the warmer months.
Behind the bar, there are real ales from independent microbrewers, craft lager on draught, continental bottled lagers and beers, real ciders and quality wines and spirits. There’s always at least one vegan beer and one dark ale available. The Fox and Goose is also unusual in serving its draught beer in lined, oversized glasses, meaning that punters can enjoy a full pint of liquid with room for a creamy head on top. This is the pub’s preference instead of brimful glasses, which don’t fit a full pint as well as head, and is an example of the Fox and Goose’s spirit of fairness. Also on offer here are vegan pasties, pork pies and Scotch eggs, as well as teas, barista coffees and cakes.
The pub’s left hand room is often used for live music, and regular poetry nights, pub quizzes and a Harvest Festival all take place here, the latter featuring the likes of apple pressing, cider tasting, a pumpkin contest, talks, walks and meet the brewer events. Located just out of the very centre of Hebden Bridge, the Fox and Goose is situated just where the road forks off towards Heptonstall, for those wanting to visit Sylvia Plath’s final resting place.
