All the pubs that I have seen close down have done so because they were crap imo, and had ther butt's well and truly spanked by a nearby Wetherspoon (itself a pretty ropey proposition). It would take little effort, in the right area, to offer a clean pub with decent hygeine standards, well trained staff and good, fresh home-cooked food but, alas, that is extraordinarily rare.

 

I think a combination of more tv selections, home computers, X-boxes etc plus cheaper booze in the supermarkets, has created a society that is less sociable and more inclined to stay at home.

Facebook & forums have replaced the need to 'go out' to meet your mates - you can chat on-line from the comfort of your sofa. You can hook up with your mates on-line to play X-box or PS games.

I'm sure the smoking ban has also had some kind of impact because, especially in winter, folks have no desire to go outside for a puff.

Where I live there is practically a pub on every corner - a throw back to when there was no tv and people required alternative forms of entertainment. Quite a few, however, having been closing down over the last few years because they no longer get the same clientle they once did.

OH & I almost never go to the local pub - about 5 minute walk - because it is simply not our thing. It's a very nice pub and they do put on entertainment at the weekend, but we're not really pub-goers.

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Facebook & forums have replaced the need to 'go out' to meet your mates - you can chat on-line from the comfort of your sofa. You can hook up with your mates on-line to play X-box or PS games.
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Good point I hadn't even considered things like Facebook and pet forum! It is so true though. I don't have a facebook account so my pals have to actually phone me up lol!

 

Greedy brewers, planning rules, beer duty and falling custom can be the cause. As people got picker and broke I think the failing pubs closed a long time ago. A good pub can keep going but when you're up against these factors and supermarkets then it's unfair to say they are rubbish.
CAMRA launches a new report which shows over a thousand pubs have been saved by previous beer duty cuts - News - CAMRA

MPs call for more protection for British Pubs - Press Releases - CAMRA

I live in an area of Cambridge that has 5 pubs in close proximity - and yes you could argue that Cambridge is affluent but nobody goes to a pub enough to keep it in business in this climate. But each offer something different. My favourite 'local' is run by my friends who hold the licence for 5 pubs in the city and it's a real ale pub. It works because the landlord buys just one barrel. Unlike Weatherspoons who buy up end of brews and are cheap, this pub offers good quality real ale but you have to be quick to get it. My friends chose to be free house publicans after having tenancies with Greene King who pub up the rents and the targets to the point of greed. Many landlords I know have left Greene King because of this.

Another model that works in my gran's village is that the pub is a post office too. I also own shares in a community pub in my hometown and it's run as a genuine local pub.

There was a lovely pub in the village near my parents, well occupied but it was a victim of planning laws that belatedly forced the council to change their policies - too late for this pub but it was well used. Here's a link - it shows very clearly how planning law can cause a pub to shut without anyone ever knowing about it.
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You can help by joining CAMRA and they have lots of guidance on how to help a local. They can listed as community assets too and they've been a huge force behind saving many great pubs.

Saving Your Local Pub - CAMRA

 

Apart from the usual reasons over recent years there just isn't the need for the number that once existed.

In the City of Nottingham in Victorian days for instance there were 360 pubs..but in those days until the 1930s there was nothing else to entertain the people. Mostly dingy,cold,badly lit homes....No TV or radio,so people gathered in the local pub or music hall for entertainment.

In this day and age the diverse opportunities to keep ourselves amused in our own homes means we don't have to leave our own four walls.Unless we fancy a night out for something different.

Apart from all that...the prices. I've never understood why a pint of brown liquid churned out in vast quantities in a modern brewery should cost five times more than a pint of milk...Dammit all they don't even have to keep a cow.

 

Apart from the usual reasons over recent years there just isn't the need for the number that once existed.

In the City of Nottingham in Victorian days for instance there were 360 pubs..but in those days until the 1930s there was nothing else to entertain the people. Mostly dingy,cold,badly lit homes....No TV or radio,so people gathered in the local pub or music hall for entertainment.

In this day and age the diverse opportunities to keep ourselves amused in our own homes means we don't have to leave our own four walls.Unless we fancy a night out for something different.

Apart from all that...the prices. I've never understood why a pint of brown liquid churned out in vast quantities in a modern brewery should cost five times more than a pint of milk...Dammit all they don't even have to keep a cow.

Brewing beer is a complex and costly process might be one reason why plus the landlord has to pay his overheads :roll eyes: Mind you depends what one drinks - I think I'd rather drink pond water than Stella.

Radio began broadcasting in 1920s and many pubs had radio sets to attract the public but during the late 1800/early 1900 beer was safer to drink than water for all ages.

 

Well I do love a nice country pub, but can't really complain as the occasions I actually go (prob 3 or 4 times a year) I'm not really helping to keep them open...

Back where I used to live on the outskirts of Bristol we were spoilt for lovely pubs and most got crazy busy in the summer (2 by the river next door to each other) and another near a walking spot and another river, popular with dog walkers.

But away from these nice locations the rest struggle to compete with the likes of Weatherspoons, Brewers Fayre etc.. Which imo are fine if you want a cheap night out or meal.
But personally we choose to drive out somewhere to a nice pub with a bit of character and that is quiet.

I also think a lot of people buy supermarket drink and stay home. Look at New Years Eve? The ridiculous money the pubs charge just to get in, puts a lot of people off. I know many people now have house partys.

 

Tis cheaper to buy from the supermarket. Drinking at home you don't get caught drink driving. The smoking ban was the last straw. We don't have any pubs round here just loads of hotels.

 

I live quite near one of the main shopping areas in our city, so there are quite a few pubs in walking distance. We are also a seaside town and a university city, so there are quite a few pubs catering to the tourist trade and to students as well.

But the worst thing (IMO) is the rise of Wetherspoons pubs in this city (one in each of the main shopping areas). It seems to me that wherever a Wetherspoons opens up, it is followed by gangs of heavy drinkers with uncaring behaviour.

Don't get me wrong. I like a pub with loud music, lots of chatter and sometimes 'loud behaviour', but there is something about a Wetherspoons that seems to bring out the worst in drinkers and eventually does tend to blight the surrounding area.

Having said all that, when I was a kid, I remember there being pubs within walking distance of most people in the city (not just the shopping areas) - pubs on many street corners and even half way along many residential streets. But most of these have long gone.

Friends of my mum used to run a pub like this and they say it was the smoking ban that finally finished them off. After having to compete with low supermarket prices and people drinking more at home, once it became necessary for many of their regulars to go outside for a cigarette, even the 'homely atmosphere' was shattered and people just stayed home.

That was a shame, as these pubs were often good for local communities - charity collections, supporting local residents, etc. But that's all gone now.

What we do have now though, is the local council encouraging a 'cafe culture' along the local high streets, with pedestrian precincts and tables and chairs outside the many coffee shops. The problem is, this is not Spain or the South of France and on many occasions those sitting outside need a hot coffee to stop them shivering.

Of course, this 'cafe culture' is great for smokers, as they now have somewhere to sit and smoke and will frequent the cafes as at least they are welcome there.....that is, until a new bylaw is brought in to stop them....

 

What we do have now though, is the local council encouraging a 'cafe culture' along the local high streets, with pedestrian precincts and tables and chairs outside the many coffee shops. The problem is, this is not Spain or the South of France and on many occasions those sitting outside need a hot coffee to stop them shivering.

Of course, this 'cafe culture' is great for smokers, as they now have somewhere to sit and smoke and will frequent the cafes as at least they are welcome there.....that is, until a new bylaw is brought in to stop them....

I've noticed this, although I didn't notice I'd noticed it until I saw your post (if you see what I mean). I spend quite a lot of time in Cardiff and there are loads of coffee shops there that are open until late. Also when I went to Belfast recently I went to an amazing old pub called The Crown, with some work colleagues, which was just like stepping back in time, and then on our way back to where we were staying at about 9.30pm we popped into a coffee shop for a hot chocolate! Wouldn't have been able to do that years ago!

 

can't remember the last time I went into a pub.

 

Brewing beer is a complex and costly process might be one reason why plus the landlord has to pay his overheads :roll eyes: Mind you depends what one drinks - I think I'd rather drink pond water than Stella.

Radio began broadcasting in 1920s and many pubs had radio sets to attract the public but during the late 1800/early 1900 beer was safer to drink than water for all ages.

Keeping a herd of cows and processing the milk isn't exactly kids stuff...as for overheads...every business has staff,heating,rates etc. including the supermarkets that sell lemonade at 50p a litre not at rip off pub prices.As for lager,the breweries have pushed it like hell the last thirty years because it's more profitable for them.

 

Larger is basically gassy cats wee....

Get the proper stuff

 

I used to go out a lot but then stopped going as much for a number of reasons...finances where one...prices went up income came down, smoking ban in pubs was another....I get that people who don't smoke shouldn't have to put up with it but I do smoke and in mid winter it's far too cold to go outside for a ciggi lol ...just one o those things I suppose ...it's my prob that I smoke, not the non smoker who doesn't want it in their face in the pub.

 

Keeping a herd of cows and processing the milk isn't exactly kids stuff...as for overheads...every business has staff,heating,rates etc. including the supermarkets that sell lemonade at 50p a litre not at rip off pub prices.As for lager,the breweries have pushed it like hell the last thirty years because it's more profitable for them.

Just to be clear that I don't buy milk from a supermarket myself, I use a local dairy here and I don't consider Charlie Wells or Greene King as I drink from neither brewery.

But yes, dairy is a very good analogy isn't it? Pressed down by the big supermarkets for price of milk/small brewers also pressed down by big breweries/government, learning the trade/apprenticeships for learning to brew beer, investment in the herd/buying in good products - great contrast. I don't actually know any small independent breweries that sell lager, I know many who work very hard to brew good real ale. There's a great one in Cambridge who worked with an MA student at my university Welcome to BlackBar! | BlackBar Brewery

There are lots of success stories though. My local has sold 3,754 ales in about five years with about 10 pumps on the bar, 5 barrels in the back and the bar is packed most evenings. It's in a small side street away from town. I can think of many more and I enjoy the pub a lot. I can take Molly there unlike a coffee shop and most are free houses. Though we are really spoilt for independent coffee shops in Cambridge too, I can't take Molly. But one of our pubs saw this and he also sells great coffee which is his USP in an area with 5 pubs in staggering distance including the real ale one I've mentioned.

The smoking ban did affect trade, this from the London Standard in 2011 "The heart of the capital has been hardest hit, with 99 pubs lost in Westminster and the City between July 2007 and the end of last year with the smoking ban, the recession, cheap supermarket alcohol, planning rules and duty increases all contributing to a "perfect storm''.

The next hardest-hit parts of the capital - Camberwell and Peckham and Holborn and St Pancras -lost 29 pubs each. Mark Field, Tory MP for Cities of London and Westminster, said the trend reflected "fundamental changes in drinking habits". He added that planning rules make it easy for pub firms to turn properties into housing.

Research by CR Consulting for the Save Our Pubs And Clubs campaign found 4,800 pubs had closed in England during the same period.

Also badly affected were Islington South and Finsbury with 27 closures, Greenwich and Woolwich with 26, Poplar and Limehouse with 23, Bermondsey and Old Southwark with 22 and Chelsea and Fulham with 21.

At the other end of the scale, no pubs shut in Carshalton and Wallington and just one in Ilford North and Hornchurch and Upminster.

Simon Clark, director of the Save Our Pubs and Clubs campaign, said the smoking ban should be amended to allow separate smoking rooms.

Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said a 35 per cent rise in beer duty over three years was the biggest issue. She said: "With more big rises planned, it is one area where the Government could make a big difference.""

Sad reading, these aren't just places, they are livelihoods and often historic buildings too with unique fittings that are often lost forever once closed.

 

So....... as its a friday I have just returned from our very busy local!

We also have the CAMRA pub of the year for the region only a few minutes away by car, its independnt and so rotates through Real Ales and Ciders and serves just 1 larger despite its 7 or so pumps! We go there maybe once or twice a week for a cheeky one (or two for him)... The nice thing about it is they have a lot of stout/porters/milds/dark beers on which is hard to find these days! And alot of local breweries

Our local is more frequented as its walking distance - only 2 ales on, and no good Ciders but it is staggering distance, friendly, clean and good food (which they will box up for takeaway on request )

BUT

When living in a town, we never went to pubs on a regular basis. The locals were horrid, and poor in terms of beers served! Plus never friendly IME...

I would be sad to see more rural pubs go though, as they can be part of a community. Ours certainly are!


ETA its alot cheaper to drink at home - we tend to mix and match. So we went to have 2 drinks at the local tonight, and will probably have the same tomorrow, and 1 on Sunday. Thats more to socialise with neighbours and chat... We will have wine in the rack at home for the rest of the weekend!

 

I think so many people go off to uni this has a huge impact on the social communities of villages and towns, all the 18-25s disappear. By the time they are a little more settled and thinking of moving back to villages and towns there also thinking about children and won't be going out to pubs.

I hope more apprentiship schemes become available and people stay closer to home.

The only pubs that's do really well have to serve good food which excludes a lot of pubs.

 

I used to go out a lot but then stopped going as much for a number of reasons...finances where one...prices went up income came down, smoking ban in pubs was another....I get that people who don't smoke shouldn't have to put up with it but I do smoke and in mid winter it's far too cold to go outside for a ciggi lol ...just one o those things I suppose ...it's my prob that I smoke, not the non smoker who doesn't want it in their face in the pub.

I don't smoke, never have and detest the smell of smoke if I am out...put it down to growing up in a houseful of heavy smokers. Once the smoking ban came in, I thought, great, time to go back to the pub and live a life again..but in all honesty, smoking ban or no smoking ban and I still have not been in one for years.

 

Our small town, a rural town I would guess describes it best had some 12 pubs along the high street!!! A few have closed and remained vacant. One is in the process of becoming a tesco express (huge fight was out up to block but they won) another became a tesco express 4 years ago. Yes two tesco expresses within 1 mile of each other!

Sadly its the smaller pubs, the ones with the quirky old buildings and bars that have closed its the chain pubs suchs as weatherspoons which have remained.

We once went to our local a 5 mins walk and were gawped at like we didnt belong in there. It certainly was a you're not a local vibe from the regulars. It has a poor rep for that.
Our other local, we have 7 in our village which are all a 10 mins Max walk from front door. Its a lovely friendly pub but always bursting at the seams so we don't go unless family are visiting.

We have only been to the pub about 8/10 times in the 10 years we've been together. We prefer to buy something in whilst food shopping, saves money, no dog sitters needed or rushing home for the dogs, I can relax more as I can't sit up at a table etc.
As others have said entertainment is now in your telly box 24/7.

 

Price. People simply do not have the money to spend on booze. Especially when it can be £5 a pint, or 12 cans for £9 in tesco........

 

I believe the main reason the pubs started closing were 3 things.
1st.. was when the pub opening times changed
2nd. the no smoking ban
3rd. price.

 

Simon Clark, director of the Save Our Pubs and Clubs campaign, said the smoking ban should be amended to allow separate smoking rooms.

One landlord tenant in my area spent £2000 of his own money thirty years ago fitting decent air conditioning...there wasn't a whiff of smoke in the place.

In comparison all the other local managed pubs,with the aid of the mighty breweries,had at the most a nine inch expelair fitted in a wall that gave the impression of a Dartmoor fog on entering the bar...Useless!!

If they had dipped their hands into their deep pockets and had decent air conditioning fitted with a seperate smoking area when the subject of smoking became an issue, a complete ban may have been avoided.And they wouldn't now be flogging off half their premises.

 

I don't actually think pubs closing is a new phenomenon. We just notice it more now.

Thame (in Oxfordshire) had over forty pubs in the 19th century. Twenty years ago we were down to fifteen or so and we've only got 10 left - if I've counted right :001_huh:

It would be interesting if someone did a comparison with the decline of pub numbers against the rise in hairdressers and nail bars though

 

My "home town" - at its peak - had 32 places of worship and 33 places to drink in, almost every church or chapel has (or had) a pub or tap room next door

 

We have plenty of pubs round here but the one just over the road I wish would close down, they have not respect for the local people, music until one in the morning sometimes later, shouting outside in the no smoking area.