It was a pleasure to visit The Hop Pole Inn to meet with representatives from the Campaign for Real Ale and discuss the challenges facing pubs across Worcestershire.
Our local pubs are at the heart of our communities. They are places where people come together, support local employment and play an important role in the social and economic life of our towns and villages. However, like many hospitality businesses, they continue to face significant pressures from rising costs, taxation and changing trading conditions.
It was valuable to hear directly from CAMRA about the issues affecting the sector and to discuss how we can continue making the case for policies that help our pubs thrive.
Gareth and Hayley at the Hope Pole Inn were recently named Redditch & Bromsgrove CAMRA Pub of the Year 2026. It is a thoroughly deserved recognition of the hard work they have put into creating a welcoming, traditional community pub with an excellent reputation for real ale.
Congratulations once again to Gareth, Hayley and the whole team on this fantastic achievement, and thank you to everyone who took the time to meet with me. I will continue working with colleagues in Parliament and with the hospitality sector to ensure the voices of our local pubs are heard.
