Brewer serves up 1000-job pub refurbishment plan

A brewer has unveiled plans to create nearly 1000 jobs nationwide in a £40 million expansion.

HEINEKEN UK is revamping its Star Pubs division.

The blueprint includes a £2.2 million commitment to upgrade and reopen a number of pubs across the North East and North Yorkshire, which bosses say will create nearly 80 posts.

Pubs set for improvements include The Schooner, in Amble, Northumberland, and The South Lodge, in Ripon, which is due to reopen at the end of May.

Work is also set to take place on The Red Kite in Winlaton, near Blaydon, which closed in January, and Gibsons, in York, later this summer.

Lawson Mountstevens, Star Pubs’ managing director, said: “Consistent investment – rather than a stop-start approach – and a strategy of creating great locals have been key to helping our pubs weather the storms of the last few years.

“This £40 million investment from a Dutch business into UK pubs is a resounding vote of confidence in the future of the sector.

“The reopening of The Schooner has had a terrific response from local residents.

“The vast majority of our pubs are leased by independent operators, who run them as their own.

“In partnership with our licensees, our investment programme keeps alive the great British tradition of individual locals, each with their own unique feel and serving the particular needs of its community.”

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