Licensing chief left fatigued by pub life

A licensing chief has gone on to the shop floor to sample pub life at the sharp end.

Scarborough licensing officer Una Faithfull spent four days

at the town's Newcastle Packet pub, to understand the role of a licensee.

She emerged from her stint "exhausted and shattered" but delighted she took the chance to experience how a working pub operates.

"It nearly killed me but it was an experience I will never forget," Faithfull said.

She added: "I was put through the mill and never realised just how hard licensees work and the many different skills needed to operate a pub."

The chance to work at the Newcastle Packet came thanks to an invitation from licensee Kath Duffy who has run the pub for 25 years.

Both agreed it would be useful for the North Yorkshire town's licensing boss to get a hands-on appreciation of pub work.

Over the four days Faithfull pulled pints, changed barrels, ordered beer, did the accounts and even cleaned the toilets.

She said she was completely unprepared for the long hours and hard graft that the job entailed.

"I was working until 1am and then getting up again at 7am. There was hardly a quiet moment during all this time.

"Few people realise what a lot of hard work goes into running a pub," Faithfull added.

She said she was impressed with the way Duffy handled customers who threatened to become unruly and the efforts she made to ensure health, safety and other licensing objectives were met.