The Craws Nest was nominated by pub director, Jennifer Lawrence, in the Community Fundraising Hero Scotland category and has seen competition from almost 700 other pubs nationwide.
This Community Fundraising Hero Scotland Award recognises pubs who support charities and other good causes through fundraising. This is not just judged on the amount of money raised, but on how it was done.
The Westerton Arms in the Bridge of Allan has also been shortlisted in the Scotland category.
The pub was shortlisted because the judges were impressed with the amount of fundraising done in a short amount of time to help those in the area. The entry talks about how they have provided children across Angus with Xmas pyjamas from a donation to Carnoustie fire station. Many other children also benefited from their Angus toy appeals. The British Legion food bank sent letters of appreciation for their donations to help them provide for families unable to provide for themselves and they have received certificates for our donations to cancer charities, close to their heart. They have also raised money for guide dogs and a prep school in Africa as well as a local care home showing just how far a small pub can reach.
Jennifer Lawrence, said: “We are delighted to be chosen as a finalist for this award. The Craws Nest is a true community pub filled with family who have taken every cause we have backed and got behind it 100%. The kindness & generosity they have shown, even in hard times, has shown us true community spirit. We couldn’t be more thrilled to be finalists in this category.”
The winners will be announced at an award ceremony, sponsored by Matthew Clark, at the Houses of Parliament on 4 March and all shortlisted pubs are invited to attend along with industry leaders and MPs.
Des O’Flanagan, co-founder of PubAid, added: “We launched these awards to celebrate the great work that pubs do for their community. Craws Nest is a perfect example of how pubs support and are a hub for many people in their community. The awards are in their fifth year and the volume of entries this year was staggering. What clearly came across from reading all the entries is that there are so many publicans that are doing amazing work nationwide. It was very hard to get to a shortlist so even getting to the finals is an amazing accolade for The Craws Nest.”
PubAid, which organises the awards in association with Matthew Clark and the All Party Parliamentary Beer Group, has refreshed the awards and created more categories to congratulate more community pubs throughout the UK. There are 33 finalists in total across five categories.