The Greatfield was built by Bass Breweries in the early 1990’s as part of an out of town retail centre of which the large Safeway supermarket was the dominant commercial feature and central attraction. An advertisement in June 1992 gave details that ‘The Greatfield is a spacious, comfortable pub/restaurant with excellent facilities to suit almost everyone’s needs. These include a family room, an enclosed outdoor play area with safety flooring and baby changing room. As well as facilities for the disabled, there is a large car park, a beer-garden and a no-smoking area. We offer live music, barbecues (weather permitting) and pub food at its best. Most of the menu is home cooked to suit all tastes and pockets.’ The Gloucestershire Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) noted that the ‘interior looks like a rural barn’. Two real ales from the Bass portfolio were on offer – Draught Bass and Worthington Best Bitter.
The pub had a half a million-pound refurbishment starting in May 1999, opening to the public two months later on 19th July 1999. The new look Greatfield included an ‘impressive ‘L’ shaped bar’ with comfortable furnishings including large Chesterfield sofas. There were also polished wooden floors and real open fires. A Bass spokeswoman said that it had been decided to “reposition the pub for an adult market. Some people want to go out for a drink or meal without children.” Under-14’s were no longer allowed in, even for meals. Not everyone was happy. A local resident said: “For a pub on a large estate with many young families, not to allow them to dine together seems to be a very short-sighted policy.” The refurbishment of the Greatfield was recognised at the International Design Awards in November 2011 when the pub owners Ember Inns scooped a design management award for making their business at the Greatfield more attractive.
The design of the building was not so resilient during the unprecedented amount of rain that fell in July 2007, causing chaos county wide and remembered as the Great Gloucestershire Flood. The Greatfield was forced to close when water cascaded through the false ceiling below the conservatory roof.
Ember Inns also own the King Edward VIII pub in Longlevens, near Gloucester. A charity event in June 2010 raising money for Breast Cancer involved teams walking the seven miles distance to and from the Greatfield and ‘King Teddy’ pub.
Another refurbishment took place at the Greatfield in 2008. A review in the Gloucestershire Echo in February 2009 noted that it was clean and modern inside: “It’s the sort of place where you can tuck yourself away in one of its little alcoves, relax with a pint or glass of wine and enjoy some god old-fashioned pub grub.” Another Echo review in October 2011 seemed to indicate that after re-branding the Greatfield had become a gastro-pub. It was reported that the ‘pub has now been divided into a dining area and bar, but there is still plenty of room for drinkers and for eaters and for those who are doing both.’
