The Bevy has reached the finals of the PubAid Community Pub Hero Awards 2021.
PubAid is an organisation dedicated to promoting pubs as a force for good in their local communities and the aim of these awards is to recognise the licensees and their teams who have gone above and beyond to support their local communities over the lockdowns of the last year.
They received 115 entries and nominations from pubs across the country, and The Bevy has made it to the final 10! We all feel very proud.
PubAid co-founder Des O’Flanagan said: “Our heartfelt congratulations go to these pubs, who have all earned their place in the finals by going the extra mile and beyond during the lockdowns. Choosing the 10 finalists was a real challenge for the judges, as every pub who entered had a strong story to tell. Those who have reached the shortlist should be very proud of their achievement.”
And we are!
The Bevy nomination was in recognition of all that our team has been doing for the past year to support some of the most vulnerable people in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean throughout the lockdowns.
The judges were impressed by Bevy Meals on Wheels – our commitment to delivering hot meals three times a week to ensure that none of the elderly attendees of our regular lunch clubs went hungry. As you know, delivering the Bevy Meals on Wheels provided not just dinner, but a friendly face and socially distanced chat, as most of these people were self-isolating. We teamed up with local schools, churches, charities and community groups to make sure no one was forgotten, and worked with FareShare, to use ingredients that would otherwise have gone to landfill.
We have now served more than 8,000 meals and during the lockdown we staged a number of online pub quizzes to keep the community connected, including our online Deaf-friendly quizzes. On the August Bank Holiday, we hosted a free family fun day offering socially-distanced arts crafts and fun for local children, and during school holidays, we've been providing hot lunches to families who receive free school meals. And in November, to mark Meals on Wheels Week 2020, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall joined us by zoom to chat with some of our elderly lunch clubbers!
Our Secretary Chris Llewellyn says of the PubAid nominated, "We are so excited about being nominated for this award. We are really proud of the difference we’ve been able to make over this challenging year. It’s also really inspirational to hear about what the other nominees have been able to achieve, gives us lots of ideas as to what we can do next!"
Later this Spring, a virtual awards ceremony will take place online to reveal the overall winner of the PubAid Community Pub Hero Award. We’ll keep you posted when we find out more details and in the meantime please keep your fingers crossed for us.