Farron calls on parish councils to use powers to help save local pubs

Following last week's successful British Pub Week, South Lakes MP Tim Farron, is calling on parish councils across South Lakeland to use the powers they have to help save local community pubs and services.

Tim is leading the charge in the Lake District to encourage parish councils to make the most of the powers available to them to help keep struggling village pubs, shops or other services open to the community through the provision of small grants, or where appropriate by borrowing to make an investment, such as purchasing a freehold on a property.

Ministers from the Department of Communities and Local Government acknowledged their belief that many parishes have not made the most of these opportunities available to them and is now pushing for councils to work with their local communities to try and work even hard to keep rural services alive.

Commenting this afternoon Tim said: "Everyone knows that our local village pubs and shops are the heart of our communities and it is devastating every time one of them is threatened with closure, often for the most simple of reason such as the landlord retiring.

"Our parish councils have the ability to save our local services within their grasps so I'm encouraging each and every one of them in the South Lakes to ensure they pull out all the stops they can, by exploring every option within the community to help save our local pubs and shops."

Mayor of Kendal Jonathan Brook said: "These powers will allow us to step in and help local pubs. The Westmorland Gazette is making sure the plight of local pubs is high up the local agenda and I am working with Tim to make sure councils like Kendal Town Council know about these powers and we can use them locally."