Mark Haslam

Herefordshire CAMRA

Living Villages

Friday 2nd December 2011

Community ownership?

• In the past it was always the option of last resort – to be used if the only alternative was the loss of a valued pub.

• This is now changing, as community ownership can be seen to bring benefits over and above conventional commercial ownership and operation.

Community ownership:

• Why should a community buy its pub?• To secure the future of a valued asset• To be able to influence the direction of the

business: delivering the needs of a local community

• To put a pub on a sustainable footing• To remove the threat from alternative use• Options to further diversify• Ensures financial and emotional buy-in

Live & Let Live, Bringsty Common

Live & Let Live

• “Dream On” said CAMRA HQ!

• Herefordshire CAMRA helped raise £158K in just six weeks in 1997

• Put together a legal vehicle and signed-up shareholders

• Ultimately the co-op wasn’t necessary, when it was sold to a private buyer in 2002

• Pub is thriving today – objective achieved

First of the many

Old Crown Inn, Hesket Newmarket, Cumbria

Old Crown Inn

• Bought by the village in August 2003

• 58 investors invested £1,500 each

• Secured the future of the pub

• Village co-operative put together with help of Co-operative & Mutual Solutions

• Run as an Industrial Provident Society

• Established as a template model for community ownership

What is required?

• Money – raise through share subscription, grants, loans and donations

• Business plan – will it work as a business?

• Share prospectus – selling the vision (and the shares) to the community

• Finding someone to run the business

• Putting in place robust and appropriate processes

Buying the Pub

• Ensuring a market price sale

• Raising the capital – what if you fail?

• The owner doesn’t have to sell, even with the Localism Act and ‘Right to Buy’

• Consider refurbishment costs

• Consider running costs

• However, it DOES happen!

Another closed pub for sale in Cumbria in 2009

Butchers Arms, Crosby Ravensworth

• Idea of community purchase conceived in October 2009 as no buyers for pub

• Community sounded out – were they interested?

• Similar pubs visited elsewhere – what could be learnt from their experience?

• Share prospectus and business plan issued early 2011: shares from £250

Butchers ArmsCrosby Ravensworth

Butchers Arms – the plan

• Over £300K raised from grants and loans, but over 90% share subscription

• Shares pay a dividend of 3% from Year 2

• Tenant’s rent pays dividends

• Local community maintains pub – the equity is their ultimate guarantee

• Tenant given contract to run business

• Pub opened in August 2011

CAMRA – how we can help• We can give advice and technical support

• We will also get others involved (CMS etc)

• Help with business plans and other documentation

• Help with marketing, publicity and strategy

• CAMRA members will buy shares

• If we don’t know something, we will know some-one who does

Herefordshire’s first community-owned pub

CAMRA is currently working with two local communities looking to develop community buy-outs for their local pub. One is shortly to issue a Share Prospectus and

Business Plan.

Royal George, Lyonshall

Herefordshire CAMRA

www.herefordcamra.org.uk