Community Pubs Day will be held on 23 March to raise a glass to the hundreds of ACV-listed pubs and urge other communities across the country to consider listing their local to give it additional protection.
The Department for Communities and Local Government is producing a ‘community asset certificate’, which will be made available to every listed pub to hang behind the bar, giving publicans the chance to celebrate the fact their pub is prized so highly by customers. Hopkins has written to the licensees of all the listed pubs asking them to consider taking part.
Hopkins said: “A lot of hard work has been put in by communities up and down the land to protect their beloved pubs from sell-off and I believe many more could be afforded this protection, which is why we are calling on people to consider whether they might want to list their local.
“The Great British pub is a national treasure which is why we are determined to protect it. I am delighted this Government’s action is providing even greater protection for local pubs and giving communities more of a say in their preservation and look forward to toasting this success on community pubs day.”
An asset-of-community-value listing gives locals six months and the support they need to come together with a community bid to buy the pub should it be put up for sale.
The Government is currently in the process of changing the law so planning permission will be required to change the use of or demolish ACV-listed pubs.