Action to keep the beer flowing

The Campaign for the Protection of Rural England has teamed up with the Campaign for Real Ale to help struggling landlords keep rural pubs open for business.

Rupert Segar, campaigns manager for CPRE Worcestershire, spoke out after the Prince of Wales backed moves to protect rural pubs by announcing new initiatives from the Prince's Trust.

"Village pubs are too important to be lost," he said.

"Often called the Village Parliament, the local is more than just a place for people to meet and debate the issues of the day.

"The pub can be a lynchpin for the entire community."

He said he hoped more villages could follow the example of Rock Cross, near Bewdley. Locals formed a consortium to buy bought The Rock Cross Inn when it closed in August this year.

Ralph Round, one of half-a-dozen members of the consortium, said a private buyer had made a bid on the pub which he believed had been accepted.

"Even if the bid falls through we'd step in and buy it," he said.

Mr Round, of Rock Cross, said the consortium wanted to involve the whole village in the ownership of the pub by selling shares.

"Hopefully, the pub will open again earlier rather than later," he said.

Mr Segar added: "The trend towards drinking at home, foot-and-mouth and the fall in tourism, and the drink-drive laws, have seen an overall decline in the number of people using Worcestershire's village pubs.

"In many cases, a pub is worth more sold as a private house than as a going concern, but innovative landlords and enthusiastic patrons can reverse that trend."

Mark Haslam, of Worcestershire CAMRA, welcomed CPRE's support.

"We know a lot about people, publicans and pubs and can offer practical advice on how to turn around a failing inn," he said.

"But we're not experts on planning and issues involving local and national policy regarding rural development. CPRE is. This is where a partnership can add value. We can combine our strengths to gain a secure future for the village pub."