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The new owners of Black Sheep Brewery have made redundancies at the Masham firm.

Keystone Brewing Group, which acquired the brewery from administration in May last year for £5 million said a “strategic restructuring” resulted in the “reduction of a small number of roles” within Black Sheep.

The company attributed the redundancies to “enormous challenges” faced by the hospitality sector and said “efficiency measures are essential” to secure the future of the brewery.

Chief executive Mark Williams said the organisation was “forced to consider all options available”, adding:

“This is an incredibly difficult time for all, and we are saddened the impact of this decision will have on our valued colleagues.

“Making redundancies is always the last resort, but unfortunately we have been forced to consider all options available to us.

“This is about making the brewery as efficient as possible, and securing its legacy for years to come.”

The Stray Ferret asked Black Sheep Brewery to confirm whether those made redundant had been paid. The team responded:

“The Black Sheep Brewery team can confirm that all staff who’ve since left the business as a result of this restructuring have been paid as agreed within the terms of their redundancy.”

We also asked the company to confirm exactly how many redundancies were made, but did not receive a response.

The news comes just weeks after the firm announced former chief executive Charlene Lyons had stepped down after nine years in post.

In a press release issued last month, the company said Ms Lyons had left “to pursue other interests”.

Ms Lyons was kept on following last year’s sale of Black Sheep, which also resulted in a “small number” of staff losing their jobs at the time.

Administrators Teneo Financial Advisory revealed sales fell from £19 million in 2019 to £14 million in 2022 – resulting in a £1.6 million loss.

Creditors, including HMRC, were owed nearly £3 million.

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