Two Pembrokeshire inns are toasting success after scooping regional prizes in the licensed trade's annual Best Pub Awards.

The Carew Inn and the Stackpole Inn are now in the running for prestigious national titles in the Morning Advertiser awards. The winners will be announced in February.

The Carew Inn is celebrating a double success after gaining two regional prizes in the Best Pub Awards.

The popular venue in Carew has been named Wales regional winner in the Fundraising Pub of the Year and the Family Pub of the Year in the The Morning Advertiser awards.

Licensee Mandy Hinchliffe said: "I'm delighted. It's great to be recognised by the industry for what we are trying to achieve."

Mandy first started to raise money for charity after the tragic lose of husband, Rob, who died of cancer aged of 39 in 1997.

The couple had been running The Carew Inn for seven years and his death left Mandy with two young children to look after and a pub to run.

Family and friends donated £1,600 in lieu of flowers and a raffle raised another £2,000. The proceeds were handed over to the chemotherapy unit of the Singleton Hospital in Swansea, which had treated Rob.

Mandy said: "We decided to hold an annual fun night in August to raise money for the hospital."

Since then, it has raised between £2,000 and £4,000 with stalls selling cakes, home-made goods, bottle stalls, lucky dips, as well as face painting and a bouncy castle. Live music and a pig roast are other attractions that draw large crowds to The Carew.

Last May, Mandy took part in a 26-mile walkathon and raised over £2,000.

In terms of its family appeal, the child-friendly pub is opposite Carew Castle - so it's a natural choice for people visiting the area.

Mandy will attend the national awards ceremony at the Hilton Hotel, London, in February.

The Stackpole Inn has been named the winner for Wales in the Food Pub of the Year category of the awards organised by The Morning Advertiser.

Licensee Chris Jewel, runs the pub with wife, Kim, who says the secret of the pub's success is offering good produce honestly cooked.

She added: "Our main aim is to use as much local produce as possible. We use good ingredients that are as fresh as you can get and keep the cooking uncomplicated."

The couple ran a sales and marketing company for many years before entering the licensed trade. Chris said: "We travelled around the world for years, so we know what we like to experience ourselves. You don't just serve up something you think people want."

The couple only took on The Stackpole in August 2003 after running a pub in Suffolk - their first experience in the licensed trade.

They immediately started to put their own stamp on The Stackpole after conducting research to find out what the locals thought of the food which led to the introduction of a menu with more appeal to pubgoers.

Favourites with regulars include local sea bass with orange and ginger sauce, sirloin of Welsh black beef, and Pembrokeshire sausages. The pub also caters for cask ale fans with four real ales always available.