PUB owner Nicola Newton is looking forward to next weekend’s reopening of her business with a mixture of nervousness and excitement.

Nicola runs the Rose and Crown Inn in King Street, Knutsford, with her extended family, and is set to welcome her customers back on Saturday, July 4.

Nicola and her team have introduced a number of changes at the business to comply with government guidelines and to protect her staff and customers.

All the customers will be served at tables, whether that be in the bar, restaurant or terrace, with Nicola welcoming everyone at the door before they are assigned to their table.

People will be able to reserve a table, which will be restricted to a maximum of six people, there will be one entrance and one exit, and a rigorous and frequent cleaning regime will be in place.

Despite all the changes Nicola was eager to stress that the Rose and Crown would ‘still be a place where you can come safely and have a great drink or a great meal’.

She said: “We are a very professional outfit who are taking this extremely seriously, and we want to give people a really enjoyable, safe environment to have a nice time in.

“Hopefully people will feel they are in good hands, and from the feedback I have had people can’t wait to come back to support us.”

The 350-year-old coaching inn boasts a bar, 70-seater restaurant, terrace and nine bedrooms.

“One of the biggest changes is that people won’t be able to just walk into the pub and have a pint at the bar,” Nicola added.

“Whether you’re coming in for a drink or for food you will either have reserved a table or will be seated at a table.

“Everything will be table service, whether you come in for one drink or a three-course meal, and one server will cover a section.

“I will be on the door to welcome people, and pass them on to a member of staff, who will assign everybody a table and take a nominated person’s name and phone number.

“We have to do that, and have to keep it for 21 days for track and trace reasons.

“We will have no tables over six people, and will have a strict two in, two out policy for the toilets, with two separate cubicles and staff checking the toilets every half an hour.

“Trust is a hugely important issue to us, and we have thought about all of this very seriously.

“We have a very mature, experienced team, so we believe we can manage it.”

People will be able to book for the restaurant and pub from Monday.