Pub concern after community fund axed
BBCRural communities will find it increasingly difficult to save their local pubs from closure after a government scheme was axed, a campaign group has warned.
The Community Ownership Fund, which helped local groups buy closure-threatened pubs, was set up as part of the Conservative government's levelling up programme.
However, it was scrapped late last year and the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) said it was concerned communities would be unable to meet the financial challenges.
The government said it was "determined to boost opportunity in rural communities" and it was "introducing new powers to help".
The village of Ireby, near Wigton, Cumbria, once had five pubs. The last one standing is the Black Lion but its owner has decided to sell up.
The Black Lion Community Group was set up to try to purchase it, although plans were derailed when the Community Ownership Fund ended.
It said it hoped the government's proposals to replace the grant system will offer a helping hand.
Secretary Malcolm Boswell said: "The government has announced in recent weeks quite large investment packages for urban towns.
"We're just hoping that they don't forget that rural areas are just as in need of regeneration."
The pub's current owner, Mark Nellist, said he was aware of the impact of its closure.
He said: "The Lake District is a fantastic place to be, but when you're in a bit of an isolated village such as Ireby you might not see your neighbours from one week to the next.
"As soon as the pub opened, we saw that cohesion start to form again.
"I think it was a real fix for the community, and I think if the pub closes, it'll have exactly the opposite effect."
'Difficult for volunteers'
One pub to benefit from the fund was the Samson Inn in Gilsland, on the border between Cumbria and Northumberland, which reopened in October after receiving £215,000.
Jane McDaid, chair of the Gilsland Community Benefit Society, said it was "a real shame" there was no longer "this pot of money".
"It'll be very, very difficult for any volunteers, groups who want to buy the pub to do it," she said.
"The pubs will be turned into houses and lost as a business and a community venue."
George Campbell, the Samson Inn's tenant, said Gilsland had been fortunate.
"We're one of the lucky ones," Mr Campbell said.
"Four months on, we're finding out what the problems are with the pub. We hope to iron those out in time for what we hope will be a very busy season in a couple of weeks' time."
'Quick change of use'
According to Camra, about 50 pubs close a month across the country.
Paul Hillhouse, from the group, said he believed the government grant was a lifeline which saved many pubs, and its loss will have a real impact.
"Once a pub's closed, a change of use normally follows incredibly quickly," he said.
"Once that bar's pulled out, once the cellars are repurposed, it becomes infinitely more expensive to put it back as it was.
"If a community is in a position to have big support and want to buy that pub, often trying to find the money - you can be talking hundreds of thousands of pounds."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: "Due to the challenging inheritance left by the previous government we have taken the difficult decision to close the Community Ownership Fund, but we are determined to boost opportunity in rural communities.
"That's why we are introducing new powers to help communities take control of valued community spaces like pubs, so we can keep them in the hands of local people and rejuvenate towns and villages across the country."