Last orders for dozens of our locals that have shut for good

PUBS are closing across the UK, with one part of Derbyshire among the worst affected areas.

Across Derbyshire as a whole, there were 32 fewer pubs in June this year than in March 2020. It suffered the worst loss of pubs in the East Midlands, according to research from real estate advisers Altus Group.

North East Derbyshire struggled more than other areas of the county, as it now has nine fewer pubs, making it joint seventh in the list of areas that have lost the most.

The Derbyshire Dales and High Peak fared better than most as two of the 41 local authorities in England and Wales with no change in the number of pubs.

The East Midlands saw an overall loss of 86. There are fewer pubs in England and Wales than ever before, as a result of lockdown disruption to the industry, and recovery being stifled by ongoing inflation and the cost of living crisis.

As of last month, there were 39,973 pubs following a decrease of 931 since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. There was a decrease of pubs in 279 local authorities, with 41 having no change and 25 seeing an increase.

This was felt the hardest across the South East with a loss of 125 pubs. The North East weathered the storm far better, but still had a decrease of 58.

As this is a change in the overall number, these figures do not account for all pubs that have closed, as new ones may have opened to replace them. The fall in numbers over the pandemic comes on top of statistics from the British Beer and Pub Association that show the loss of around a quarter of pubs between 2000 and 2020.

A spokesperson for the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “We understand the challenges that the pub sector is facing. This is why we are supporting pubs across the UK with 50 per cent business rates relief, freezing alcohol duty rates on beer, cider, wine and spirits, and increasing the employment allowance. This is in addition to the billions in grants and loans offered throughout the pandemic.”

Chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, Emma McClarkin, praised the measures taken by the Government to support pubs through the pandemic, however she warned there was worse to come in the post-lockdown trading environment, as only a third of businesses in the sector are now profitable.

She said: “Pubs are the beating heart of so many communities across the UK, and when they are forced to close the loss is felt by local

people and, unfortunately, the number of pubs has been in slow decline for several decades, in part due to the high tax burden they face alongside wider socio-economic factors.

“Inflation has reached record levels. Energy costs are rocketing, and labour shortages are forcing almost half of businesses to operate reduced hours.

“We are calling on the new Chancellor to provide urgent relief to help curb rising costs for pubs and brewers before it’s too late.”

Pubs, like many businesses in the hospitality industry, were hit disproportionately hard by Covid restrictions,

as shown in an Office of National Statistics (ONS) report last year. By the second national lockdown in November 2020, 63 per cent of pub owners had low confidence that their business would survive the next three months, compared to 10 per cent of all other businesses.

Pubs were also hit by a significant loss of profits. Between November

2020 and April 2021, at least 70 per cent of pubs reported that their profits had more than halved compared to the same period in previous years. This rose to 100 per cent in late December, when many pubs would usually take a significant portion of their yearly earnings. In contrast to this, less than 15 per cent of other businesses reported the same during the period.

Pubs are the beating heart of so many communities... and when they are forced to close the loss is felt.

Emma McClarkin