Called by Greg Mangham, a former Bass Taverns operations director who is chair of the London region of the BII, the meeting is supported by the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers and pub companies including Stonegate, Laine, Beds & Bars, Yummy and PubLove.
Crisis, the national charity for the homeless, will host the gathering at its London headquarters on Wednesday 20 September. It’s hoped the group will go on to quickly come up with a process for getting people off the streets and into pub employment at both front and back of house.
Phoenix Community Housing and the St Barnabas charity are also involved.
Pub sector jobs
Mangham came up with the idea following industry concern about staff shortages caused by Brexit, and seeing for himself rough sleepers in doorways on trips to the capital.
“I thought, why can’t we get these homeless and unemployed people into employment in the pub sector – and when I asked Crisis about it they said they’ve never dealt with the pub industry before!”
Crisis already runs a café where homeless people are trained and prepared for work, and Mangham believes the charity can play a role in vetting potential candidates, getting them interview-ready and putting them in front of pub operators.
Hundreds of thousands are homeless
Recent research carried out for the charity suggests that some 236,000 people are homeless in Britain, more than 9,000 of them sleeping rough – more than double previous estimates.
“Morally, you can’t argue with what we’re trying to do, and while pubs are desperate for staff, there’s a commercial angle,” said Mangham.
“I have an open mind about what we can achieve, and we have nothing to lose by trying.”
Interested in working in the pub industry? Then take a look at The Morning Advertiser’s jobs site.