The Cartford Inn

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}} {{Use British English|date=May 2020}} {{Infobox building | name = The Cartford Inn | former_names = Cartford Hotel<br />Cartford Arms | alternate_names = Th'fooard<ref name=history>[https://www.thecartfordinn.co.uk/history History] - The Cartford Inn official website</ref> | logo_caption = | etymology = | status = | image = The Cartford Inn, Little Eccleston.jpg | image_alt = | image_size = | caption = The main inn building in 2016 | pushpin_map = Lancashire | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_label = The Cartford Inn | mapframe = yes | altitude = {{convert|32.8|ft}} | building_type = [[Public house]] | architectural_style = | structural_system = | material = | cost = | ren_cost = | client = | owner = 2007–present: Julie and Patrick Beaumé<ref name=ll/> | current_tenants = | landlord = | location = | address = Cartford Lane | location_town = [[Little Eccleston-with-Larbreck]], [[Lancashire]] | location_country = England | coordinates = {{coord|53.860531|-2.880667|display=inline,title}} | groundbreaking_date = | construction_start_date = | completion_date = | opened_date = | inauguration_date = | relocated_date = | renovation_date = | closing_date = | demolished_date = | destruction_date = | height = | diameter = | circumference = | architectural = | tip = | antenna_spire = | roof = | top_floor = | observatory = | other_dimensions = | floor_count = 3 (main inn building) | floor_area = | seating_type = | seating_capacity = | elevator_count = | grounds_area = | architect = | architecture_firm = | structural_engineer = | services_engineer = | civil_engineer = | other_designers = | quantity_surveyor = | main_contractor = | awards = | designations = | ren_architect = | ren_firm = | ren_str_engineer = | ren_serv_engineer = | ren_civ_engineer = | ren_oth_designers = | ren_qty_surveyor = | logo = | logo_size = 270 | ren_awards = | number_of_rooms = 15 (including two cabins) | parking = | website = {{url|https://www.thecartfordinn.co.uk/}} | embedded = | references = }}

'''The Cartford Inn''' (formerly '''Cartford Hotel''' and '''Cartford Arms''') is a [[public house]] and [[boutique hotel]] in [[Little Eccleston-with-Larbreck]], Lancashire, England. It stands on the southern banks of the [[River Wyre]], just off the [[Cartford Bridge]], one of the few remaining [[toll bridge]]s in the United Kingdom, with views to the northeast of the [[Forest of Bowland]].<ref name=caterer/>

The Beaumé family have owned the inn since 2007,<ref name="ll">[https://www.lancashirelife.co.uk/out-about/holidays/stunning-new-additions-at-the-cartford-inn-in-little-eccleston-1-5265648 "Stunning new additions at the Cartford Inn in Little Eccleston"] - ''[[Lancashire Life]]'', 10 November 2017</ref><ref name="men" /> after they purchased it from John Smith.<ref>[https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/94120 The Cartford Arms] at Geograph.co.uk</ref> Julie Beaumé was born in nearby [[Blackpool]], while Patrick Beaumé was born in the [[Médoc]], [[Bordeaux]].<ref name="caterer" />

In 2024, it was named AA Inn of the Year for Great Britain.<ref>{{cite web |title=AA Inn of the Year Awards 2024 |url=https://www.lep.co.uk/news/lancashires-cartford-inn-named-aa-inn-of-the-year-2024-4700787 |website=The AA |publisher=The AA |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref>

==History== A former [[coaching inn]],<ref name=caterer/> the first record of "The Cartford Inn" name was in 1839.<ref name=history/> It had become the Cartford Hotel by 1853.<ref name=moore258/> A landlady in the 1960s was known as "Dirty Annie".<ref name="men" />

The establishment changed name in the 1980s to the Cartford Arms.<ref name="moore258">[https://www.visitlytham.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/History-of-Blackpool-Nick-Moore.pdf ''A History of Blackpool, the Fylde and South Wyre''] – Nick Moore (2018), p. 258</ref>

== Recognition == In 2024, the inn was named [[The AA|AA]] Inn of the Year for Great Britain.<ref>[https://www.lep.co.uk/news/lancashires-cartford-inn-named-aa-inn-of-the-year-2024-4700787 "Lancashire's Cartford Inn named AA Inn of the Year 2024"] – ''[[Lancashire Evening Post]],'' 12 July 2024</ref> It has also been included in the Top 50 Gastropubs list<ref>{{cite web |title=The Cartford Inn |url=https://www.top50gastropubs.com/Pubs/UK/Lancashire/the-cartford-inn.html |website=Top 50 Gastropubs |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref> and in the [[Condé Nast]] Johansens guide.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Cartford Inn |url=https://www.johansens.com/europe/england/lancashire/the-cartford-inn/ |website=Condé Nast Johansens |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref> Its restaurant is listed in the [[Michelin Guide]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Cartford Inn |url=https://guide.michelin.com/gb/en/lancashire/little-eccleston/restaurant/cartford-inn |website=Michelin Guide |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref><ref>[https://guide.michelin.com/gb/en/lancashire/little-eccleston/restaurant/cartford-inn Cartford Inn - Little Eccleston] - Michelin Guide official website</ref>

The inn has been awarded an AA [[AA plc#AA ratings and awards|five-star rating]].<ref name="sleep">[https://www.thecartfordinn.co.uk/sleep Sleep] - The Cartford Inn official website</ref> Before the AA became the licence holder of the quality assessment schemes, the inn also received five stars from [[VisitEngland#VisitEngland Quality Assessment Schemes|VisitEngland]].<ref name="sleep" />

''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' described the inn as a "quirky yet stylish boutique hotel with a modern British-French restaurant".<ref>{{cite news |title=The Cartford Inn review |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/lancashire/hotels/The-Cartford-Inn-hotel/ |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref>

''[[The Times]]'' described it as "a great foodie find in Lancashire".<ref>{{cite news |title=Cartford Inn review |url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/cartford-inn-3ggb87q8l |work=The Times |access-date=2 March 2026}}</ref>

==Food and drink== The inn's food, which is the work of [[head chef]] Chris Bury (formerly of [[The Fat Duck]]),<ref name="men" /><ref name="ll" /> was reviewed by ''[[The Guardian]]''{{'}}s [[Jay Rayner]] in 2017<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/nov/12/the-cartford-inn-lancashire-long-may-it-flourish-restaurant-review "The Cartford Inn, Lancashire: ‘Long may it flourish’ – restaurant review"] - ''[[The Guardian]]'', 12 November 2017</ref> and ''[[The Caterer]]''{{'}}s Brendan Coyne in 2015.<ref name="caterer">[https://www.thecaterer.com/news/hotel/better-business-the-cartford-inn "Better Business: The Cartford Inn"] - TheCaterer.com, 16 January 2015</ref> Bury took over the head-chef position from Ian Manning in 2016.<ref name="caterer" />

Also on the property is the two-storey River House,<ref>[https://www.thecartfordinn.co.uk/private-events Private events] - Cartford Inn official website</ref> which was formerly John Smith's Hart Brewery.<ref>[https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/5948392.alans-diamond-geezer/ "Alan's a diamond geezer"] - ''[[Lancashire Evening Telegraph]]'', 6 September 2002</ref><ref>[https://www.hartbrewery.co.uk/history/ History] - HartBrewery.co.uk</ref>

The inn was named the UK's 2020 Pub of the Year by ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''.<ref name="men">[https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/food-drink-news/north-west-pub-just-been-18894056 "This north west pub has just been named in the best in the UK"] - ''[[Manchester Evening News]]'', 8 September 2020</ref>

==Accommodation== There are thirteen rooms in the main inn.<ref name="caterer" /> There are also two cabins―named Ziggy and the Robins Nest<ref name="ll" />— on the property.<ref name="sleep" />

==Gallery== <gallery> File:The Cartford Inn Courtyard 2026.jpg|Courtyard File:Cartford Inn.jpg|The inn's sign in 2017 File:The Cartford Arms - geograph.org.uk - 94120.jpg|The building in 2005, when it was known as the Cartford Hotel </gallery>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://www.thecartfordinn.co.uk/ Official website of The Cartford Inn] *[https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/food-drink-news/cartford-inn-little-eccleston-lancashire-18436051 "North west pub installs greenhouse-style dining pods ahead of reopening"] - ''[[Manchester Evening News]]'', 17 June 2020 *[https://www.geograph.org.uk/of/cartford+inn The Cartford Inn] at Geograph.co.uk

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cartford Inn, The}} [[Category:Pubs in Lancashire]] [[Category:Hotels in Lancashire]] [[Category:Coaching inns]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in the Borough of Fylde]] [[Category:1839 establishments in England]]