IT’S called the Ship Inn – but the pub at Acaster Malbis was nearly sunk last summer when the nearby River Ouse bursts its banks and inundated the bar.

The Ship remained closed for almost nine months, but now it has reopened under new landlady Carol Temple, following a major refurbishment.

And Carol says it will be much better able to cope the next time torrential rain upstream causes the Ouse to flood, because of “flood-friendly” features which have been installed.

She said that last September, the bar got flooded to a depth of two to three feet.

But now the lower levels of the walls were of exposed brick rather than plastered – in the same style as the riverside Kings Arms in the centre of York, which regularly floods.

This meant that if the Ship’s bar was flooded, it could be quickly cleaned with high pressure hoses and then reopened, rather than having to wait for the room to be dehumidified and for the wall to be replastered.

Carol, who already runs the Woodman pub in neighbouring Bishopthorpe, said the Ship’s eight bedrooms had also been refurbished, in a scheme which had been jointly funded by her and by the property’s owners, Enterprise Inns.

Bar manager Alan Deanes said regulars had been delighted to discover that the pub had reopened.

He said such customers included people staying at local caravan sites or mooring their boats on the banks at Acaster, as well as drinkers from across the York area who were attracted by the idyllic location. “We have had so many thank yous for reopening that it’s unbelievable,” he said.

He said Carol had decided to take over the Ship because so many customers at the Woodman, who had not booked in advance for a meal, were having to be turned away at busy times.

He said staff at the Woodman could now suggest to such customers that they go to the Ship instead, and the reverse would apply when the Ship was full.