Tag: community pubs

Raising a glass: Beloved community pubs to be helped with new funding to broaden their services

In a boost for our great British boozers, rural pubs across the UK will benefit from new government funding to help them provide extra services for communities

  • Rural pubs to receive funding to help broaden their services 
  • As part of the Plan for Change, projects include community cafes, village stores and play areas 
  • For every £1 invested in these projects, over £8 social value is generated, new data shows 

In a boost for our great British boozers, rural pubs across the UK will benefit from new government funding to help them provide extra services for local communities. Projects will include creating community cafes, village stores, and play areas, and will help pubs bring residents and families together. 

The projects have been identified by Pub is The Hub – a non-profit organisation supporting local pubs to diversify their services. Their Social Value Report spotlit more than 40 pub projects currently stuck in limbo due to a lack of funding.  

In response, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has committed £440,000 to help Pub is The Hub deliver these projects. 

From North Yorkshire to Ceredigion and Cornwall, funding will help support local jobs and opportunities whilst increasing community cohesion as part of the Plan for Change. 

Kate Dearden, Minister Employment Rights and Consumer Protection, said: “Rural pubs are hubs of their communities and this government wants to support these vital community assets, creating jobs, supporting local economies and providing residents with a place to socialise and come together.   

“That’s why, as part of the Plan for Change, we’re keen to help secure their future with this funding, alongside measures to slash red tape, modernise licensing and to create a fairer business rates system.”

New research by Pub is The Hub shows that for every £1 invested in the provision of new services or activities, there is a return in social value of over £8. 

So far, the organisation has supported hundreds of diversification projects and aims to help 1,000 more pubs over the next three years, creating 2,500 jobs and 1,600 services for over one million residents.   

John Longden OBE and Chief Executive of Pub is The Hub, said: “We would like to thank the Department for Business and Trade for recognising the important role that pubs and publicans have in rural and deprived areas.   

“Publicans with their individual pub businesses have a vital social role in supporting local communities and helping people to overcome social isolation and alleviate feelings of loneliness.

“They have a significant social value that is beyond economic impact. They are crucial in helping to bring people together and inspiring the provision of lost services and amenities.”

To mark the launch of the funding, Kate Dearden, Minister for Employment Rights and Consumer Protection, met with John Longden, Chief Executive of Pub is the Hub, Tonia Antoniazzi MP, Chair of the APPG Beer Group, and Molly Davis from the British Institute of Innkeeping to discuss the positive impact funding will have, as well as the Government’s wider support offer for the hospitality industry. 

Nick Mackenzie, CEO of Greene King and Co-Chair of the Licensing Taskforce, said:  “We are pleased to be long-term supporters of Pub Is The Hub, which works so hard to help pubs with practical advice in extending their community services.  

“No one can underestimate the huge social and economic value of pubs. Our pubs are more than bricks and mortar where people eat and drink – they are places where people come together for all occasions and celebrations, they offer local employment and careers for people of all ages and can help in tackling loneliness.

“Additional access to funding and less red tape is some welcome news to help pubs continue to adapt to meet the needs of their local communities.”

Minister for Devolution, Faith and Communities, Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “British pubs are the beating heart of our communities, and we know people want to see them thrive.

“From bringing forward more funding, to giving communities first dibs to take over beloved bars through our new Community Right to Buy, we’re making sure they are protected for generations to come.”

DOOCOT, ANYONE? – Ed.

PiTH-Social-Value-of-PubsfinalDownload

The Good Beer Guide 2025 shows the power of protecting pubs

The Campaign for Real Ale’s (CAMRA) Good Beer Guide – the UK’s best-selling beer and pub guide – is celebrating its 52nd edition with not one but two covers featuring two of the UK’s favourite locals: Coronation Street’s Rovers Return Inn, and Emmerdale’s Woolpack. 

The Guide, which lists 4,500 of the best pubs across the UK, is the definitive beer drinker’s guide for those seeking the best pints in the nations’ pubs – and is on sale now.  

Despite the tough trading environment facing a lot of licensees, they continue to battle against the odds, and the 2025 Guide boasts over 900 pubs that are new to this edition.

Information in the Guide is collated by thousands of CAMRA volunteers who give up their time every year to select the best of the best across the UK. As well as covering 314 of the very best pubs across Aberdeen & Grampian, Argyll & The Isles, Ayrshire & Arran, Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Edinburgh & The Lothians, Greater Glasgow & Clyde Valley, Highlands & The Western Isles, Kingdom of Fife, Loch Lomond, Stirling & The Trossachs, Northern Isles and Tayside, it includes 52 new pub entries across the counties.  

The foreword of The Good Beer Guide 2025 has been written by multi award-winning Iain Macleod, ITV’s Executive Producer for Continuing Drama.

In his foreword, Iain MacLeod says: “… the story which threatened one of our pubs the most was also the one which most resonated with our times. In 2023, the Rovers Return closed its doors. A combination of the lingering legacy of the Covid lockdowns and the cost-of-living crisis meant that landlady Jenny Bradley couldn’t afford to keep it open. The characters – and the viewers – lamented the news like the loss of a loved one. If it were needed, it was a timely reminder of the central place the nation’s pubs have in our lives and in our affections.”  

CAMRA Chairman Ash Corbett-Collins said: “The Rovers Return Inn and the Woolpack represent the UK’s love of their local, and to have them featured on the covers for this year’s Guide is very exciting.

“CAMRA’s mission is to ensure support from both the UK and Scottish Governments as well as tangible legislation to protect pubs in this country. By next year’s edition of the Guide, we want to be talking about the beer and pub trade growing with the support of communities and parliaments alike.”   

Coronation Street and Emmerdale are available to watch on ITV and ITVX. This year’s Guide is sponsored by Midland Snacks Traditional Pork Scratchings and endorsed by Cask Marque.

The Good Beer Guide 2025 is set to be published on 26 September 2024, and is available to order now from https://shop1.camra.org.uk/product/the-good-beer-guide-2025/