Assets of Community Value: 100 pubs given greater protection
Listing a pub as an ACV with the Council means a pub can’t be sold without the local community being told. This latest milestone is part of the ‘List Your Local’ initiative from the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra), which aims to get 300 pubs listed as community assets.
Upon opening the Beer Festival, Lewis is expected to say: “Camra’s campaign to List your local is doing a fabulous job raising awareness of our new Community Right to Bid and I am delighted that in 100 loved locals have now been listed as assets of community value. Cheers to each and every one.
“We have known for hundreds of years just how valuable our locals are. Not just as a place to grab a pint but also to the economies and communities of those they serve and that is why we are doing everything we can to support and safeguard community pubs from closure.”
Stop the clock
Camra’s chief executive Mike Benner said: “Camra is delighted that the Government has recognised the vital importance of pubs and empowered communities to protect them.
“By listing their local, communities are ensuring that if the pub is under threat in the future, there is a much-needed extra layer of protection which ‘stops the clock’ should it be put up for sale.”
Introduced through the Localism Act under new ‘Community Right to Bid’ powers, listing a pub as an ACV gives councils a greater ability to refuse planning applications from developers and communities up to six months to put in a bid to buy the pub, should it be put up for sale.
The announcement that 100 pubs have been listed as Assets of Community Value means that pubs are now the most listed community building and are among the most popular listed asset overall.
The Great British Beer Festival will be officially opened by Lewis tomorrow, with over 800 real ales, ciders and perries on offer to 55,000 people throughout the week. For more information on the festival visit www.gbbf.org.uk.
