Community Pubs Month to champion the importance of local pubs in wake of new figures showing 16 pubs close across Britain each week
But community is key to the whole story of a sustainable foodservice sector, particularly in hospitality. Beyond the image stereotyped in the TV soaps of the pub as the centre of action, or the glossy sheen of the gastropub printed on the pages of the weekend press, the local also supports small producers and small business in their immediate area. We recognise this in the Footprint Awards with our Community Vote, an opportunity for anyone to nominate an establishment and get the regulars to vote for it.
Recognising that some of this is being lost in the UK, CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale is launching a new national pubs campaign, Community Pubs Month, to champion local pubs.
They want to increase footfall in pubs, to encourage more publicans to promote new or existing events to attract further trade, and to spread awareness of community pubs throughout the media.
The real aim of this Month is to give a window of opportunity for hard working publicans to promote any events they have planned in April, and for us at CAMRA to give them all the help and support in terms of publicity and increased trade.
We realise its a tough time out there for pubs at the moment as CAMRAs new pub closure figures highlighted last week and this is why CAMRA has put a large amount of campaigning funds into this initiative to help pubs market themselves during April. Said Tony Jerome, CAMRA Head of Marketing.
Kicking off proceedings on Monday April 2nd with Community Pubs Day the day after CAMRAs Members Weekend & AGM in Torquay CAMRA branches across Britain will be organising a wide range of events to promote their local pubs during the Month, and will be working in the lead-up to April to ensure this first year for the campaign is a big success.
The dedicated website for the Month www.communitypubsmonth.org.uk is geared up to give pubs free publicity through listing any events licensees have planned throughout the month of April. Pubs signing up to the Month will be given free promotional material to help promote their events, whether it be the regular weekly pub quiz or a big one-off charity bash to get the community together.
As well as CAMRA branches ordering promotional material to maximise the exposure for this new campaign in pubs across Britain, pub licensees can also order packs direct from CAMRA. Available now, Community Pubs Month packs will include campaigning posters, beer mats, leaflets and pump clip crowners. Pubs interested in acquiring material for Community Pubs Month can find out more by visiting www.communitypubsmonth.org.uk.
