New research shows the West Country and northern towns and cities have been among the hardest hit by pub closures but you can help fight against the trend through our Your Pub Needs You campaign
The pub closure black spots of Britain have been revealed – as the Mirror’s campaign to boost the battered sector received more praise.
Thousands of pubs have closed in recent years, falling victim to soaring costs and changing habits. The decimation has ripped the hearts out of communities the length and breadth of the country.
Analysis of official data shows how the West Country and northern towns and cities have been among the hardest hit by closures.
Since 2010, the number of pubs and bars in Wiltshire has slumped by 135, with the same gone across Somerset. Other areas that have seen a big fall include County Durham (90), Oldham (65), North Yorkshire (90), Bradford (70), Shropshire (50), Bedfordshire (70), and Suffolk (100).
Tameside in Greater Manchester has seen pub and bar numbers fall from 195 to 135., Buckinghamshire had 400 hostelries in 2010, whereas the number now is 325, and in South Oxfordshire, the figure has fallen by 55 to 115 over the 14 year period.
Some areas will have, because of their geography, started with more pubs. But almost all have been left with fewer pubs and bars. Cornwall, for instance, has seen 70 places lost since 2014, down from 565 to 495. Meanwhile, Powys has lost 65 venues, and South Lanarkshire 55.
The figures are based on numbers of pubs and bars by local authority area across the country. They are rounded up or down to the nearest five. The data covers those that have changed use – for example converted to shops or flats – rather than the number that are sitting empty, a figure that would be much higher still.
It comes amid growing support for the Mirror’s Your Pub Needs You campaign. We are calling for a fighting fund to help pubs survive and thrive, recognition for those landlords going above and beyond for their customers, and measures to make it easier for communities to take over treasured pubs that are risk of being lost.
Among those backing the drive is Muir Rogers, co-founder of live music firm Gigpig, who said: “Pubs are the first stage for so many artists. Global stars like Ed Sheeran, Adele, Oasis and the Arctic Monkeys all started out playing in pubs before hitting the big time, so if we keep losing pubs, we’re not just losing places to grab a pint, we’re losing the birthplace of live music and culture.
With so many rising costs and dozens of closures every week, the future of live music is at risk, and without urgent action, we’ll see fewer venues, fewer gigs, and fewer opportunities for new artists to start out. That’s why this Mirror campaign is so important – saving pubs means saving the music and culture that make the UK world-famous.”
Keir Starmer hailed the importance of Britain’s pubs and revealed that he sometimes slips out of No10 to go to his old local. The Prime Minister threw his weight behind the Mirror’s campaign to save our struggling boozers, still reeling from the pandemic and energy crisis. Mr Starmer said pubs are “hugely important”, telling us: “They are the places where friends, family, community come together around something which is very British – the pub.
Others want Labour to go further, criticising measures announced in last autumn’s Budget. Ed Bedington, editor of trade publication The Morning Advertiser, said: “The main threat to the pub sector is the government’s Budget which, come April, will see massive increases in costs to pub operations in the form of national insurance increases, the changes and increases to minimum wage – which will discourage employment of young untrained people – and the reduction of rates relief which will see operators facing a nearly 40% increase in business rates.”
