Events, events and more events - that's the way the landlord at the White Horse in Chedgrave hopes to build up customers.

Landlord Simon Peck admits that pubs are no longer able to survive on just regular trade, and therefore he's arranged dozens of events to get the punters back in.

When he and wife Karen took over the pub five years ago, he said competition was less fierce.

'There were a lot of average operators around then, but there are just good and excellent operators left now,' he said. 'That makes competition fiercer.'

That's why he has organised a dozen events in the next four weeks to add more reasons for people to pay a visit.

There's a quiz night on May 13, a pudding club on May 15, steak night on May 20, a 'mummaccinos' children's event the next day, and on May 23 there's the spring beer festival with more than 20 real ales on offer.

That's followed by a night of live music called 'Totally Wrecked', a breakfast club, pro am bowls, a fish and then gourmet burger night. The big event is the 'Teddy Bear's picnic' on Monday, May 27. They also host musical theatre evenings and have just put on 'Me and My Girl', and in October they are planning a Fawlty Towers evening with Mr Peck dressed as Basil Fawlty.

Mr Peck said: 'The industry needs all the help it can get. When we took over we made a pledge to give the pub back to the community. We're here for the community to use. And I think we are about half way there now. We have two bowls' teams, two ladies' darts teams, two pool teams, a squash club, three cricket clubs, and we sponsor a children's football team. We also do Christmas carol concert here.

'We try to put the pub at the heart of the community. Regular trade - people coming in for drinks and meals - has dropped away, and that's why what we are now doing is events-led. You cannot survive on regular trade. There are five pubs within a 2-mile radius of us, and you need to have something extra.'

The Evening News has been urging people to return to pubs in our Love your Local campaign.

to see more stories from the campaign visit www.eveningnews24.co.uk/loveyourlocal