Residents of Trawden, Lancashire are urged to enjoy a glass of mulled wines.
This year, they have come together to save their local pub from closure – this triumph after saving the villages’s only shop, post office service, community centre and library. The group now has high-street access to cash.
The community has been given a new lease of life by their fighting spirit. It also sends out a positive message to communities up and down the country – in danger of losing their pubs, bank branches and cash machines – that they can fight back against big city and public institutions which have little or no interest in preserving the infrastructure of small towns and villages.
Cheers! Toby Walne (left) with Adam Young, his landlord, and Jo Stafford. Jo Stafford is accompanied by Stephen Wilcock, Molly Ralphson, and Jo Stafford.
The Trawden Arms, which has been serving the community for 127 years was set to be demolished earlier this year. Developers were looking to convert the structure into flats.
But the 2,000-strong community pulled together to raise £520,000 so that the pub can keep serving the residents of Trawden for years to come. The latest in a string of survival “miracles” that villager’s have created to maintain the integrity of the community.
As desperate as I am to discover the secret of its success, a pint of Pride of Pendle is in my hands and I’m standing at the pub bar of this old cotton mill village in Pennines. Moorhouse’s Brewery eight miles distant in Burnley is the source of my beer.
Jo Stafford, Jo Stafford’s partner and Adam Young my new landlords arrived in Leeds last month. They have been warmly welcomed to their home. Adam shares: “There is something special about Trawden’s community spirit. The secret of the pub’s survival is that we are not the only ones running it – there are another 400 landlords living in the village.’
What Adam is referring to is the 400 villagers who bought a share in the inn, paying at least £500 each to ensure its survival. Although not a wealthy community, they managed to raise £460,000. Plunkett Foundation, a charity, handed over a further £30,000 and lent an additional £30,000 to make the purchase possible.
Part of the pub’s appeal is that as part owners, many villagers are keener than ever to use it – even suggesting new ways the pub can be used. I am too early for both the weekly ‘folk music night’ when locals sit by the open fire to sing songs and play music – and a special festive visit from carol singers raising money to fix the village church’s roof.
Activities include willow weaving and Christmas wreath-making. The pub has been selling over 1,000 pints per week. This is an incredible feat considering the previous community ownership.
Steven Wilcock is the chairman of Trawden Forest Community Pub Group. Steven joined me for a drink. Although his modesty hides the Lancastrian spirit and determination required to turn what was rapidly becoming a deserted community into a vibrant, bustling village.
Steven helped to transform this community seven year ago, when the local council closed the community center. The library was closed by the county council and the Post Office shut down the village.
Steven said, “It was hard. We aren’t making much money individually, but something about the former cotton mill community binds us together like a family.
On the cobbled streets of the village, you will find the tight-knit Victorian terraced houses built to accommodate mill workers.
Gracey Farthing (three years old) and Emma Haines, her grandmother, in the shop
Opposite the pub is a shop with an adjoining library and next door a community centre – all having been saved by locals. At the back of the library, a local subpostmaster visits every Monday morning – but only because locals were prepared to provide him with premises.
Locals can use this service to make cash withdrawals or deposit cheques or cash into their bank accounts. The shop also allows customers to use a cashback service for up to £50 six days a week. To use this service, shoppers only have to spend a few pennies.
The shop is kept open by 80 volunteers who work in shifts of two hours. Shop and pub operate on a business basis. All profits are reinvested back into services.
Molly Ralphson serves as the volunteer coordinator at the library and shop, which were reopened after two years’ fundraising. There are many local products on the shelves, such as homemade brownies and walnut cakes. Essentials like coffee, tea and sugar are all sold in their natural state, without the need for packaging. The containers are brought by residents.
Nicola Sharples, a local resident and a jeweller, regularly gets £20 cashback from the shop. According to the 56-year old, cash is essential for budgeting.
“Paying with credit cards is risky because you do not know exactly how much you spend.” A bank-backed access group for cash assistance announced last week that 2,000 stores across the country will be offering a cashback service, without the customer needing to purchase anything. This service is currently offered by 1,000 shops.
It will also roll out shared banking hubs in five new towns – branches where customers (personal and business customers) can do basic banking as well as see a representative of their bank on a specific day of the working week. These are in addition to two hubs – Rochford, Essex, and Cambuslang, South Lanarkshire – that have been running since April this year. One hundred and eleven free cash machines are also planned, with another thirty being installed in the local post office.
Molly Ralphson however isn’t impressed. According to her, cashback is not a novel idea. It’s a smokescreen to allow the banks to keep removing ATMs and closing branches at alarming rates.
Over the past decade, a third of all bank branches have been axed with 4,300 shutting since the start of 2015 – equivalent to 50 closures a month. Every month, 500 ATMs that can be used for free are shut down.
Natalie Ceeney, chair of the action group, says: ‘We know demand for cash is declining – but we are also aware that it continues to play a vital part in the lives of at least five million people in the UK, including some of the most vulnerable.’
Her comments include: “The Cambuslang shared banking hubs and Rochford have demonstrated that there are multiple ways to provide cash access for people.” We are confident that our plans will lead to a bright future in cash access across the UK.
For those who want to preserve community services, the Plunkett Foundation offers financial and guidance.
Liz Woznicki is the communications manager. She says, “We offer free support to any community that’s considering a share ownership project. That includes legal advice.”
Remember, we have to help everyone go digital.
Lord Holmes
By Lord Holmes, Joint Chair of Parliamentary Banking and Fintech Group
It is encouraging to see how much progress has been made over the past few days in regards to preserving access to high-street cash.
This is a win for Jeff Prestridge, The Mail’s personal finance editor who worked hard and long to make sure that communities across the country aren’t abandoned by banks.
There has been an increase in desperation, and the feeling of powerlessness when local banks close. If you’re old, disabled or poor, then the only alternative is to travel to the nearest town – often time-consuming, costly and inconvenient.
For small businesses, the only options left have been to shut up shop in order to deposit their takings – or stop accepting cash altogether. The cash action group has created a new structure that will allow communities to seek redress for closing their local branch. The Mail on Sunday, I’m certain will be keeping a close watch on the situation and holding any banks responsible.
This is also a great opportunity to think about the larger conversation surrounding digital services beyond banking.
Online bookings are a great way to get your booster shot, GP appointments or renew your subscription to garden waste.
Many people feel frustrated and desperated.
They’re constantly being told online that it is possible to accomplish certain tasks without having to think about how they could do them.
Digital-literate people can be at the top of the line to get their prescription renewed or to get better rates on savings accounts. You’re not digital-savvy? Then you have no luck.
This has become a major public policy concern. It was highlighted in the aftermath of the pandemic when many families were unable to send their children to school because they didn’t have internet access. All homes should have fibre broadband. Also, we need to encourage people to “go digital”.
Not too long ago, millions of TV viewers switched from analog to digital. Although we don’t think about this because it was so successful, it was part a larger, coordinated project by government, charities, and industry.
While the digital economy may be here, many are still not using it. This is why we need to support them in going digital. We need another joint project.