1st May 2021
R&A Good Cheer Awards – Winners – R&A Magazine for May, 2021.
Transcription
R&A Good Cheer Awards – Overall Winner
The Swan, Clewer has “redefined the term community pub“.
More than just a pub, The Swan is a community hub offering much more than just food and drink, with opportunities for young people from a local independent SEN school helping them with work experience, numerous Zoom events from quiz nights to book clubs to children’s storytelling and internationally-themed cheese and beer nights to tie in with the Six Nations.
When purchased, the pub was in a “very bad state” and needed new flooring, wiring, redesigning and redecoration – all of which was done largely by volunteers and with kind offers from tradespeople.
The community-owned and run pub has gone to amazing lengths over the past 12 months to keep the community together as well as working with other local businesses impacted by the pandemic.
When the pub was open during the summer last year, Prosecco evenings, brunch BBQs and farmers’ markets were enjoyed and flowers and chocolates sent to one 99-year-old, complete with a chorus of happy birthday via Zoom.
One nominator summed it up, saying: “The Swan has redefined the term ‘community pub’. It is genuinely fully integrated into many aspects of local life. In spite of lockdowns, it continues to play a full role in the local community via its various events and relationships with the Green Room School. Notwithstanding the continuous renovations required to secure the long-term viability of the pub itself. It really is remarkable.“