What a sofa outside a pub has to teach us about good governance What can leaders in the social sector learn about governance from the story of sofa outside a local pub in Brighton? In the third instalment of his governance column, Bob Thust – a member of the Bevy Management Committee – brings to life some…

A Week in the Bevy Last week a derelict pub in Hampshire that almost became another depressing statistic was named as CAMRA’s Pub of the Year. The message that a badly run pub that had been shut, had been turned around and was now thriving should be stuck up the backside of every pub property…

Imbibing for the Community The other night a few of us from the Bevy went to London for the Imbibe Awards. Walking through the doors to this restaurant/night club/Tarzan jungle, I felt like stone-age man blinking into the light. Blimey, the Bevy couldn’t be further away from this party. There was such a bewildering range…

2018 Chair’s Report You know you’re onto something when the doctor recommends you go to the pub. But with a loneliness epidemic that advice might not be as unusual as it sounds. So meeting up with the Friday Friends every week for some food, company, bingo and a laugh is literally just what the doctor…

Can Pubs Cure Loneliness? A report published last year by the Jo Cox Commission, revealed that loneliness was as harmful to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day So with the government appointing its first loneliness minister, what role can pubs play? After spending an afternoon helping out at Friday Friends the seniors lunch club…

The Community Business Revolution Thanks to sponsorship from Power to Change The Bevy were able to put on a Community Business Revolution event at Exeter Street Hall We were blown away by how many people came and were interested, especially those people who have just started, or are thinking about setting up their own community…

UNVIABLE MY ARSE! When I hear a developer or Pubco company saying that a pub is unviable all I can think of is ‘what if this was a football club.’ Your team are rubbish, they are losing every week and are bottom of the league. Worse they are thousands in debt. Close them down I…

2016 Chair’s report A snapshot of one hectic week in the life of the Bevy in September shows just what a community pub looked like. WARM (Widening Access, Research and Mentoring) from Newport visited for the weekend to see how we tick, delivering a Brains at the Bevy talk about their work in further education…

2017 Chair’s report The Bevy community pub is two years old – and when our story is eventually turned into a Hollywood blockbuster, you won’t believe the monumental effort it’s taken to keep it ticking over! We always aimed to be ‘more than just a pub’ and we have definitely fulfilled that. We now host…

The Future of Pubs When people started protesting about the abrupt closure of the Dyke Pub in Brighton the owner asked where were all these people when it was open. Whatever he did, he claimed the pub lost money and as he liked antiques he would sell furniture there instead. While this highlights lax planning…

Mayor of Brighton & Hove – and his kind words about The Bevy It was time to make pizza: mushroom pizza, very thin with a smattering of onion, and finely chopped olive on a margarita base. The locals in bar at the The Bevendean Cooperative Pub certainly liked it and asked for more – I…

A FAREWELL TO FATHER JOHN As the packed pub raised a glass, the vicar of Moulsecoomb said it was like being at his own wake; but there was nothing downbeat about Father John Wall’s leaving bash at the Bevy – the community pub he helped open. It was like an old Mayors roadshow while Brighton’s…

WE ARE ONE! Last week the Bevy celebrated its first birthday, and the week showcased how we are so much more than just a pub. For our birthday party who better than the fab Fish Brothers to entertain a packed Bevy. Our community choir sang on the Monday and on Wednesday evening Lee and Karen…

The Bevy’s success proves the local boozer can be the beating heart of a thriving community LAST Saturday I found myself not at my usual windswept non league football ground but at the theatre. My excuse was that The Bevy had been nominated for “Best community Business” at The Argus’s Community Stars awards at the…

Raising a Glass to The Bevy One of the visions we had when we opened The Bevy was that it would feel like a front room; somewhere you felt immediately welcome when you walked thru the door. Our first ever garden fayre was the perfect example of how we are achieving that. From 3 to…