The Blue Ball Inn in Sheffield won the Community Regular Hero award in the most recent Community Pub Hero Awards and now other pubs in the region can enter for the 2025 event which is held in front of MPs at the Houses of Parliament.
Pub companies, breweries and local MPs can all enter a pub that they know has done something special in Sheffield, whether that’s raising money for good causes, putting on community events, supporting grassroots sports or with an innovative sustainability initiative.
The Blue Ball Inn won for two of its regulars, Bridget and Paul Manley, as they run the Worrall Environmental Group from the pub. Through their fundraising and community efforts the group have created initiatives to maintain the village. They have planted flowers and trees and raised thousands of pounds for the local community who have shown huge support and appreciation of their efforts.
The work going into maintaining and improving the village of Worrall has strengthened community bonds and a sense of pride among residents, ensuring the Blue Ball Inn and its team are fully at the heart of the community.
Tonia Antoniazzi MP, the new Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group, who hosted the event last year, said: “I was honoured to attend the awards last year and meet so many dedicated Publicans and hear about how they support their local communities and know that this year will be incredible as well.”
Pubs in Sheffield who have community and charitable activities are now being encouraged to enter themselves into the Community Pub Hero Awards, organized by PubAid in association with the All Party Parliamentary Beer Group and sponsored by Matthew Clark.
Pubs and pub companies across the UK are encouraged to enter one of five categories. The following three categories also have a regional winner from England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland: Community Support Hero which celebrates a pub that truly supports its local area; Community Fundraising Hero for the pub that raises money for charity; Community Regular Hero for an individual who goes above and beyond.
Entries are now open here and are free to enter.
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For more information and to speak to Des O’Flanagan please contact Emma Trimble or Cara Churchman at Just Nothing on emma@justnothing.co.uk and cara@justnothing.co.uk
NOTES TO EDITORS
The categories
Community Support Hero: recognising licensees who help their communities. If your pub is a ‘good neighbour’ to your local community, then this award is for you!
Charity Fundraising Hero: recognising 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
Community Hero Regular: recognising an individual or group of customers who help the pub’s fundraising efforts or its work to support the community.
Community Sport Hero: recognising pubs who bring the community together via sport. This could be events for national sport competitions or at a grass roots level with local teams.
Community Sustainability: recognising how pubs are helping the environment whether that’s in pub itself or within the local area.
Community Pub Hero Awards: PubAid launched its Charity Fundraiser Pub Awards in 2018, with sponsorship from C&C and support from the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group. The awards ran again in 2019, sponsored by Matthew Clark, and in 2020, with pubs closed for months due to Covid, they were reshaped and renamed as the Community Pub Hero Awards.
PubAid is a not for profit organisation, supported by over 40 pub companies, industry suppliers and trade organisations. We are the positive voice for pubs, shining a light on the impact that pubs have on their communities.
In a world where negative headlines often dominate, it’s easy to forget the vital role pubs play in our communities. PubAid has one purpose - we exist to shine a light on the positive impact of pubs, reminding everyone that without them, much of the heart and support within our communities would be lost.
Founded in 2009 by a number of senior pub industry figures, PubAid was born out of a desire to counterbalance the often unfair media portrayal of pubs and to celebrate the good they bring to society.
Pubs provide invaluable financial, practical and emotional support to their communities. Without this support, grass roots sport, charities, good causes and local people would suffer. Pubs raise more than £100 million every year for charity and donate a further £40 million in funds or in-kind support to grassroots sports.
Matthew Clark is a leading national drinks wholesaler with over 200 years’ experience supplying drink products, hospitality training, labour management and marketing support to over 16,000 On-Trade premises in the UK.
The All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group was set up in 1993 and has a membership of over 150 MPs and Peers. The Beer Group’s objectives are to broaden recognition of the enormous contribution of brewing and pubs to the UK economy from grain to glass - and to celebrate the unique role that beer and pubs play in our society