THE oldest licensed pub in York is to close later this month for a £360,000 renovation.

Ye Olde Starre Inne, in Stonegate, will close after trading on Sunday, April 21, and reopen in the first week in May. A number of new jobs will be created.

When it reopens, the pub, which dates back to 1644, will be part of the Taylor Walker chain, which was formed in 1730 and now falls under the Spirit Pub Company brand, which operates almost 800 pubs around the country, including The Golden Lion in Church Street, York.

Adrian Denney, general manager, said: “This is a fantastic new era for the pub.

“To receive the Taylor Walker badge is an acknowledgement of the history of our pub, the great location we have and the brilliant service we can provide.

“We also have an ambition to be the best place for cask ale in York and will be launching with six hand pulls on the bar.

“We’ll be working with local and national breweries with the aim of beating last year’s total of 418 different beers from 100 independent breweries.”

The changes to the listed building will include transforming the current kitchen into a seating area, new benches to be placed over the historic box-seats in the front side room to protect the older seats, the removal of the serving hatch, and a redesign of the bar itself.

Adrian said the pub will also be recruiting at least ten new members of staff to work in the kitchen and front of house ahead of the reopening next month.

He said: “I’m on the look out for bright, passionate and enthusiastic individuals.”