A LEISURE company has made the biggest investment in its ten-year history as it turns its attention from town centre to village pubs.

Darlington-based Olma Leisure has bought the Village Inn at Brompton, near North-allerton, for £650,000, and has pledged to invest a further £100,000 on refurbishment.

Olma has sold most of its 15 town centre pubs to concentrate on building a collection of rural pubs with food and accommodation.

"Good village pubs really work," said managing director Martin Coleman. "We have diversified because drinking habits have changed. We have to move with the times, and I feel confident village pubs will be a sound investment."

The Village Inn, the company's fourth pub, will be run by husband and wife Brian and Sandra Appleyard, who previously ran the bar at Darlington Rugby Club.

Set in nearly three acres, the pub has a 220-seat restaurant and 80 car parking spaces. It will remain open throughout the refurbishment work, which is due to be completed in May.

"Brompton is a lovely little village and the pub has already got a good clientle," said Mr Coleman. "We had no doubts about investing in it because it's a big site and place that has a lot of potential for development."

He said that, following the refurbishment, the pub would be suitable for wedding receptions and social functions.

Mr Coleman said the company was actively looking for more properties to buy in North Yorkshire and South Durham.

He said: "We wanted to get away from the urban problems and the overcrowding of pubs in town centres. Run properly, village pubs are wonderful places and really enhance the local areas for residents and visitors."

Mr Coleman and his long-term partner, Olwyn Porter, started Olma ten years ago, when they turned a six-bedroomed house in Darlington into a 20-bedroom hotel.

They now have more than 50 employees and have expanded to deal with commercial property and houses, as well as pubs.

The couple live in Appleton Wiske, near Northallerton, where they run the Lord Nelson, one of the four pubs owned by Olma. "We're very hands-on," said Mr Coleman.

Mr Coleman, who originally hails from Middleham, said small changes could make a pub successful.

"The pubs in Brompton and Appleton Wiske both have non-smoking areas, which have proved very popular," said Mr Coleman. "As fewer people smoke now than a few years ago, they appreciate somewhere smoke-free. We listen closely and offer people what they want."