IT IS the Hampshire pub that aims to make the community feel at home.

The Victory Inn on Hamble High Street opened its doors to the public back in 1806.

The pub, which has a nautical theme, has been owned by Deborah Rolfe for the past 21 years.

The 49-year-old from Hamble, said: “Traditional pubs were always about bringing the local community together and this is what we want to do. We want to keep this to be a traditional pub for the people. I like when people say this is a proper pub.”

Deborah runs the pub with her 71-year-old mum Vivien Stratton, from Hamble.

They both try to make sure the staff is happy and motivated in order to reduce turn over and provide an excellent customer service.

“ The most important thing to me is the customer service. Everything else follows. We try to keep the staff for a long time to give customers a continuity,” Deborah said.

She added: “This is really important because customers make friends with staff and staff with them. We are like a family and we want customers to feel at home and feel part of the family. Some of them even spent Christmas with us.”

Those who visit the pub can enjoy a wide range of traditional food including homemade seasonal soups, fish and chips and burgers but Deborah said that the homemade steak and real ale pie is the best seller, while children’s favourite is spaghetti Bolognese.

The menu can also be adjusted for vegans, vegetarians and those who have allergies.

“We’ve seen an increase of vegetarians and vegans in the last years and we want to make sure we cater for everybody. We also use local suppliers to make sure we offer fresh food every day,” Deborah said.

Clients can also choose between a wide selection of ales, lager, ciders and red, white and rose wine.

Throughout the year the pub also raises money in support of the Countess Mountbatten Hospice in West End and is now set to offer free Sunday roast every week to four lucky elderly Hamble residents.

“There’s lots of elderly residents in Hamble and they may not make a roast dinner for themselves on a Sunday and we want to help them to enjoy having a meal with somebody and not eating alone on a Sunday. They can just call us to book,” Deborah said.

Live music events are also organised once a month.