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01
Sept 2022
Dacre Banks pub gives warning as it faces £65,000 energy bill
The owner of the Royal Oak pub in Dacre Banks has warned that there will be a “massive” knock-on effect if local pubs close this winter after he revealed that the pub now faced an energy bill of £65,000 a year.
Speaking to The Stray Ferret, Steve Cock said he was “absolutely distraught” when he realised what the cost would be.
The pub will now have to increase its prices to try and meet the rising costs.
On Tuesday, industry group the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) asked for government intervention to help small businesses in the face of “out of control” bills.
It warned that there could be “real and serious irreversible” damage if nothing was done.
Until this year, the Dacre Banks pub paid between £13,000 and £15,000 for energy.
It will start paying its £65,000 bill next month after entering a three-year deal to reduce the cost down from the initially proposed £100,000 a year.
Read more
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- North Yorkshire Tories call on next government to ‘get real’ over energy bills
Steve and Anna Cock have run the Royal Oak pub in Dacre Banks for 24 years (photo: Royal Oak)
"We love the village; we love the people."
The pub has also been hit by suppliers asking for higher prices for products including oil, meat and vegetables.
Mr Cock hopes that the Dacre Banks community will come together to support it through the winter. He said:
However, the Royal Oak’s owner warned that it was not the only small business facing hardship:
The number of pubs in towns and villages has already reduced in recent years. According to real estate consultancy Artus Group, more than 7,000 have closed across the UK since 2012, bringing the total remaining open to just under 40,000 earlier this year.
The BBPA’s chief executive, Emma McClarkin, said:
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