The ‘Pub Loan Fund’ will provide small loans to start feasibility work, pay for lawyers’ fees or get materials for refurbishment.

More information on the ‘Pub Loan Fund’ will be announced in due course.

Buckinghamshire is home to 365 pubs, a figure down from 405 in 2010. In 2013, pubs provided approximately 4,900 jobs, including 3,000 part-time roles.

Pubs support thousands of jobs across all areas of the country, boosting the economy by £21 billion a year.

The ‘Pub Loan Fund’ builds on other measures introduced by the government to support British pubs, like the abolition of the beer and alcohol duty escalators and funding of £350,000 to help pubs provide a wide range of community-focussed services and facilities and to help local residents buy and run co-operative pubs.

Other measures previously announced by the government include:

• a centrally-funded business rate discount worth £1,000 in 2014 to 2015 and £1,500 in 2015 to 2016 for premises with rateable values of up to £50,000;
• greater flexibility on weights and measures, allowing beer and wine to be sold in different sizes than was previously allowed by regulations;
• a statutory code of practice to support landlords leasing their pubs from pub companies, with an independent adjudicator to enforce the code.

Are you searching for funding that is available now? Check out the funding section of the Buckinghamshire Business First online support tool, which has a range of opportunities available.

Photo credit: Flickr - cmbellman