Saving England's pub heritage & traditions

There are dozens of groups campaigning to save our heritage and our pubs. Listed below are some of the main ones involved. Simply by joining you are giving weight to their cause, both finacially and by swelling the numbers they represent.

CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale)

In common with all the best ideas CAMRA was conceived in a pub. It was the brainchild of four young men who were angry because their traditional, unpasteurised cask beer was being replaced with fizzy, flavourless ‘keg’. The ‘fab four’s dissatisfaction was shared by many and their campaign soon gathered support. Today there are over 100,000 CAMRA members, which makes it the ‘biggest single-issue consumer movement in the world’.

CAMRA has regional and local branches all over Britain who, in pursuit of their passion for real ales, provide the information for the Good Beer Guide, which was first published in 1973. These groups organise local beer festivals too, some of which attract thousands of visitors. The biggest is the annual Great British Beer Festival, held in August at Earls Court, which boasts hundreds of real ales on sale from all over the world. It is at this event that the ‘Champion Beers of Britain’ are chosen.

CAMRA’s dogged determination over the past thirty odd years has not only led to a rebirth of traditional British ales, saved many pubs and breweries from closure but has also given momentum to a whole new craft brewing industry. It has widened its campaign to help cider producers, fight relentless tax rises on beer, raised the alarm on the plight of traditional pubs and compiled an inventory of pub interiors of historic interest. It has been instrumental in gaining ‘listed building’ status for some pubs under threat and now of course, is campaigning, with other sympathetic groups, to save the pub from extinction in rural areas.

CAMRA CAMPAIGNS
Some of CAMRA’s campaigns are listed here, to join the campaigns go to their website link below.

Beer Styles Campaign – there are more beers on offer than just lager, stout and bitter, although until recently you’d be hard pressed to find anything else in most pub chains. CAMRA strives to awaken the public to the choice of beer styles available, in particular its May is Mild Month campaign, which promotes this once commonplace style.

Full Pints Campaign – calling for an end to the short measures, they claim one in four pints has a ‘head’ of more than 5%. CAMRA has petitioned the Prime Minister with over 23,000 signatures supporting their campaign.

Pub Heritage – their Pub Heritage Group has produced an inventory of Historic Pub Interiors which lists those pubs where original fittings and décor remain. The group campaigns for the protection of these historic pubs, many of which have no protection under the law.

Save Our Pubs – a campaign to fight closures or change of use, in particular community and rural pubs which are being sold off for development. In a few cases local communities have successfully fought the closures or have taken the pub on themselves. Camra’s campaign to stop pub closures, gives advice on who to contact and shares experiences from other campaigners. Best advice of all; visit your pub on a regular basis.

Save Our Pubs - Use It or Lose It

LocAle – a scheme which promotes pubs that sell locally brewed ale, it reduces the ‘carbon footprint’ of the beers sold, increases choice and keeps money in the local economy.

Join CAMRA here

English Heritage

English Heritage has long had concerns about pubs and their preservation. A public body whose official title is the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England, it is responsible for all aspects of protecting and promoting the historic environment in England. It has many historic buildings under its control, by joining English Heritage members get free entrance to their sites and receive a magazine and ionformation about forthcoming events and the work of the organisation.

Amongst its many resposibilities is the administration of the Listed Building scheme. It recommends buildings for listing to the Secretary of Sate for Culture, Media and Sport, who makes the final decision. Listing is used to protect buildings considered to be of special architectural and historic interest; on occasions it can be a contentious issue, especially when given to tower blocks or modernist structures. Listing does not necessarily save a building from demolition but its status must be taken into account in any planning decisions.

There are three Listed Building grades given by English Heritage:

• Grade I buildings are of exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important. Just 2.5% of listed buildings are Grade I.
• Grade II* buildings are particularly important buildings of more than special interest. 5.5% of listed buildings are Grade II*.
• Grade II buildings are nationally important and of special interest. 92% of all listed buildings are in this class and it is the most likely grade of listing for a home owner.

On this site we show which pubs have Listed Building status. Anyone can suggest a building for listing and campaign groups such as CAMRA have been successful, either directly or indirectly, for getting pubs listed.

English Heritage Listed Building information

The National Trust

Unlike English Heritage, the National Trust
is completely independent from government. Founded in 1895, its aims have not faltered; to guard the nation's constructed and natural heritage. With the support of its 3.5 million members the Trust now cares for more than 700 miles of coastline, over 600,000 acres of countryside and more than 200 buildings of national importance in Wales and Northern Ireland. Of course the National Trust has some public houses amongst its fine buildings ane they are:

The George Inn, Borough High Street, London SE1
London’s last remaining galleried coaching inn.

The Crown Liquor Saloon, Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Perhaps the most exquisite and lavishly appointed pub in the world.

The King’s Head, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire
One of the England’s oldest coaching inns.

The Castle Inn, Chiddingstone, Kent
The National Trust owns the entire Tudor village including its pretty pub

The Fleece Inn, Bretforton, Worcestershire
Beautiful half timbered inn run with a love of tradition

The National Trust
Join the National Trust and help protect England's heritage

The Pub is the Hub

The Prince of Wales believes the pub is at the heart of rural communities, acting as a focal point both socially and economically. A village without its pub affects the quality of life of everyone and is detrimental to the local economy.

As part of the Prince’s charity Business in the Community, the Pub is the Hub was set up by ‘The Prince’s Rural Action Programme’ to encourage brewers, publicans and local communities help retain vital local services such as the pub, post office and village store. Through diversifying and offering a range of community services, 360 pubs have been helped so far.

The scheme has some surprising supporters, such as Punch Taverns, Enterprise Inns, The Post Office, Diagio, Jennings and Scottish & Newcastle.

www.pubisthehub.org.uk

www.princeofwales.gov.uk

The Victorian Society

This long established organisation campaigns for the preservation of Victorian and Edwardian architecture. They raise awareness about historic buildings in danger, give advice on how to protect a building, produce publications for study and practical care of historic houses and hold seminars on all aspects of Victorian architecture.

www.victoriansociety,org.uk

See also www.savebritainsheritage.org