Cost of living crisis: Sheffield landlady fears winter will be 'worse than Covid' for pubs

Emma Shepherd, of the Blue Ball Inn at Worrall, has been given a quote that would see her bill rise from £1,200-a-month to £7,200.

She says they have already closed the kitchen on Monday and Tuesday to save money and have had to ‘drastically think about how we operate’ - but despite this, the increase is not sustainable.

And she has called on government to come off ‘holiday’ and bring in some real support.

Emma, who is co-chair of the local 20-strong Pubwatch, said: “Everyone feels very anxious at the moment - so much is unknown.

“We felt supported through Covid and all the local pubs round here survived but there has been a lack of government response this time.

“We are hoping next week to see a significant announcement on VAT.”

If the pub closes, the village in north Sheffield could lose a business that employs eight, spends with local suppliers and is a hub for the community that could become a ‘warm bank’ for people priced out of home heating this winter, she says.

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The Blue Ball Inn is a tenanted pub with Admiral Taverns.

Chief executive Chris Jowsey said: “The impact of energy price rises on community pubs is truly frightening.

“One of our licensees reluctantly gave notice to leave his pub, after the cost of electricity increased by 450 per cent, making it impossible to trade profitably. Let’s not forget that for most licensees, the pub is not just their business but also their family home.

“I raised this issue with ministers over six months ago, but the government has failed to act. A small business price cap is essential if we want to retain local pubs and the jobs and support they provide to their communities across the UK.”

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A survey of 300 publicans by trade paper the Morning Advertiser found 70 per cent were likely to shut down over the winter - in ‘an extinction-level event’.

Editor Ed Bedington said: “This situation is untenable and we’re likely to see the closure of huge swathes of pubs and bars across the UK unless something is done to tackle these spiralling costs.

“The lack of support for businesses from the Government is shocking, and while effort is focused on helping consumers, the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs due to a lack of business support, is a crisis the Government seems to be either missing or ignoring.

“Pubs are an important part of our heritage and our communities and the loss of that will be huge, both in terms of employment, tax revenues, but also the social impact.

“We need to see action delivered to businesses now on energy, not when the next leader is rolled into place in September. Pubs took a hammering during the pandemic and this situation is rapidly pushing them over the edge.”

Desperate operators are calling for a range of measures to help them survive the crisis, from reductions in VAT and business rates, through to a cap on energy prices for businesses.

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