From the East Kent Mercury, Wednesday 19 February 2020.

More than 35,000 people treated in hospital.

Shock statistics reveal county’s alcohol problem.

Alcohol-related hospital admissions in Kent and Medway have gone up by nearly a third within six years.

The latest figures show 35,130 people received treatment in 2018-19, compared to 27,550 in 2012-13.

It amounts to a rise of 27.5%, and has led to warnings that a lack of funding is hurting efforts to rehabilitate those affected - some of whom can battle their addiction for 30 years.

Penny Williams, chief executive officer of rehabilitation charity The Kenward Trust, said: "It’s a real concern because ultimately it's costing all of us far more money to keep treating people in A&E and taking up valuable nursing time and valuable resources instead of putting people through a rehab system like ours, where the costs are minimal in comparison.

"We have a very, very high success ratio putting families back together, putting people back into the community, and contributing back to society."

Ms. Williams said the Maidstone-based charity has seen a recent increase in referrals from across the country, including as far north as Nottingham.

"The government needs to think seriously about reinvesting - we've seen massive decreases of up to 16% in investment in drug and alcohol addiction, and in particular rehab because it's seen as expensive.

"But actually the reality is that it saves money longer term.

"So that's what our message is, now we've got Brexit out the way, and arguably a lot of money has been hoarded and not put through social services, we would like to see a lot more money from into this sector." In total 216,370 people in Kent and Medway ended up in A&E between 2012-13 and 2018-19 due to alcohol related issues - 65% of which were men.

Ms. Williams added: "I don’t think many other factors have changed, but arguably life is more stressful and people are turning to alcohol for self medication," she said.

"But I think fundamentally, there is so little focus on rehab being ultimately the way to change behaviours.

"It's no good just putting people on prescriptions, you need to give them time and support to overcome their addiction." The data, published by NHS Digital, shows alcohol accounted for 358,000 admissions to hospitals across England in 2018-19, a 6% rise from 2017-18.

Of these men accounted for 62% of patients, while 40% of the total were aged between 45 and 64.

Officials said those involved either had an alcohol-related disease or had injured themselves as a result of drinking too much.

Other key figures in the report included:

■ There were 5,698 deaths specifically attributed to alcohol in 2018 - 2% fewer than in 2017

■ Some 77% of alcohol-related deaths happened in people aged 40 to 69

■ People aged 65 to 74 had the highest average weekly alcohol spend of £10.60.

Alcohol is an increasingly major factor in hospital admissions in Kent and Medway.

From the Dover Mercury, Thursday 26 March 2020.

'We face the fight of our lives in these unchartered waters.'

Landlords face an unprecedented challenge to ensure pubs across Kent survive the coronavirus crisis, says the chief executive of Shepherd Neame.

Jonathan Neame - whose brewery has more than 200 pubs in the county - fears the industry could struggle to emerge from the fallout of the pandemic if it continues through to the summer.

For now, "brilliant landlords and their brilliant teams" are doing what they can to adapt - and are continuing to play a big part in their communities.

Shepherd Neame itself is offering its hotels to the NHS for accommodation and donating all food at closed establishments to local food banks and the homeless. It will also do its utmost to protect its own landlords.

But Mr. Neame warns: "If this goes on for a prolonged period then it will be terminal for many outlets."

The brewery boss admits Boris Johnson's closure of all pubs, restaurants and hotels came earlier than expected.

But he welcomes Chancellor Rishi Sunak's announcement that the government will pay 80% of wages for employees not working.

Mr. Neame says it means there is a safety net in place, but pubs will still be hit hard.

"They can't survive for that long and if this goes on until the summer, which is their busiest trading period, it will be very difficult," he said.

"If this is a sustained outbreak and social distancing is in place for a long period of time, then it's hard to see how we will not lose part of the fabric of British culture.

"We are doing our level best, but these are unchartered waters and profoundly difficult for my team and those running businesses. We have brilliant pubs and brilliant people who work there and the level of stress and anxiety out there is very deep.

"Nobody could envisage this happening."

Despite the dark clouds gathering over the industry, many pubs are already adapting - such as offering takeaway services for both food and drink.

"In many villages in Kent, pubs have always been good at adapting their business models to suit the community," Mr. Neame said.

"At the "Three Mariners" in Oare, they have set up a village WhatsApp group which is looking out for vulnerable people and those who are self-isolating, saying if they can provide meals or help with chores they can.

"There's this wonderful sense of community involvement of people working together because they want their pub to survive."

On Friday, Mr. Neame announced a raft of measures the brewery, which has 320 pubs in total across the south east, is putting in place to try to weather the storm and protect employees, licensees and the company.

These include directors taking a 20% pay cut, suspending rent receipts from licensees, cancelling the shareholder dividend and ceasing all non-contractual capital expenditure.
The brewery is continuing to produce beer under new and strict access and hygiene controls, including deep cleans, workplace distancing measures and monitoring the temperature of employees.
Mr. Neame added: "We have the best pubs in the country and nobody wants to see them close."

From the Dover Mercury, Thursday 9 April 2020.

Worried Sharon Cullen from Wellingtons in Deal has set up a GoFundMe site to help her business get through the next couple of months.

As a relatively new business having only opened in February 2019, she needs to raise £25,000 to survive.

She said: "As a business we still have financial commitments to uphold, including but not limited to; our rent, paying our suppliers, and our gas and electric bills.

"To have survived our first year in business and then see it slip through our fingers is utterly heartbreaking, therefore, we are asking for help from those who can, during this financial crisis."

Many have had to furlough their staff and rely on other government schemes.

Senior manager Ade Rowsell, of the the "Brenchley," Maidstone, says the majority of the staff are now off work.

He said: "As a business we are just trying to seek all the help that’s being offered, but it seems to be a slow and painful process."

Bosses at the "Red Lion" in Stodmarsh, near Canterbury, insist it will reopen when the crisis is over and say they have used the time to forage and create new menus.

The upmarket tavern decided against introducing a delivery service after it was forced to close because it was felt it would not be a profitable move.

General manager Morgan Lewis said: "It’s been a total nightmare because everything’s stopped and we’re getting no income.

"Financially, we’ve obviously taken a big hit - but the government’s given some quite decent help.

"Because people have been locked up for so long, when this is over, they will be excited to get out - and we’re the sort of place that people can look forward as we do stuff that’s different."

A pregnant restaurant and bakery owner from Deal had envisaged strapping her newborn to her back as she continued work, until coronavirus arrived.

Instead, Anna Vidler and her husband Chris have had to close down The Lane cocktail bar and restaurant and sister company The Lane Bakery.

And while the pandemic is allowing them to settle into parenthood at home and enjoy precious time with their new son, it’s mixed with the emotions of having to say a temporary goodbye to staff.

They say they hope to return as strong as before but it is dependent on support from the government, not only to cover wages but also rent and bills.

She said: "It has caused us so much worry, stress and makes us really sad that we have had to say goodbye to our staff temporarily.

"We hope the government can support us as we do not want to watch our business crumble."

Peter Kray, manager of Shepherd Neame pub the "Crown" in Rochester, said: "We have received great support from Shepherd Neame. We have around 15-20 full and part-time staff at the pub who are all currently furloughed, but we hope that our team will be reunited and able to resume their normal work on full pay as soon as possible."

When the pub closed, the team donated all the unused fresh food, totalling around £400, to local charities to help the homeless.

Managers of Dartford’s "Wig and Gown," Alan Pulfer and Yvonne Rickards, said: "We’re trying to take everything day by day.

"We are not doing any deliveries, but once this is over, we are hoping to re-open as a community pub, with bands, DJs, freedom nights and other events. We’re also bringing in a new menu." Licensee of the "Ship and Lobster," Gravesend, Lizzie Brown, said: "We’re trying to make the best of the bad. We’re going to deep clean and re-decorate the bar area during the lockdown.

"We’ve had a lot of people phone up to see if we’re open and as we’re by the river path we’ve seen a lot of walkers, more than usual. But we’re, shut, we’re doing our bit and getting ready for when we can open up again."

Karensa Miller runs another Shepherd Neame pub, the "Zetland Arms" in Kingsdown near Deal, which was used for filming of ITV’s Liar.

She said: "Shepherd Neame have been very supportive during this closure. We do not want to close and we will do our best to stay open.

"We would like to be open by August if at all possible so we can get some of the summer before the winter sets in.

"I am busy decorating the inside of the pub so it’s a fresh start after this terrible time."

Pubs and restaurant owners were left devastated when it was announced they must close. Many have spoken out about the situation they are in.

From the Dover Mercury, Thursday 23 April 2020. By Oliver Kemp.

Fears that bars face closure until Christmas.

Pubs to be ‘among the last’ to have restrictions lifted.

A landlord has criticised the government for not being clearer about the reopening of pubs after the coronavirus lock-down ends - as fears grow they may stay closed until Christmas.

It comes after cabinet minister Michael Gove warned that pubs across the UK would be “among the last” to see restrictions relaxed.

Jamie Clark said without clarification from government ministers, landlords across the county are being left in the dark about the future of their business.

The 31-year-old said: “It will probably be December and it won’t surprise me to be honest.

“There’s a lot of support between pub group owners because we all want everyone to survive. We believe in the pub as a social establishment, so we’re all in it together.

“But the problem is you have so many different rumours and no one knows what’s right -we’re just having to go by what government officials say on TV right now.

“We’ve had nothing from anyone in regards to reopening.”

Despite there being no direct communication from government, Mr Clark, who co-owns the "Dead Pigeon" in Rochester, believes there will be limits to the number of people allowed in each premises once they can open their doors.

He said: “I think the smaller places will be even more restricted - say 20 to 30 people in at a time, with the social distancing. A lot of pubs and bars have been built for socialising, they’re quite compact, so yeah it wouldn’t surprise me if we’re the last to open.”

“But adapting to something when you don’t know what’s going to happen is near impossible - because you could try adapting to something that’s not even the case.”

His comments come as the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) called for urgent support for pubs to ensure they can survive the extended coronavirus lockdown.

The trade body said the government should extend and expand its business grant support scheme specifically for pubs, so they can increase their cash flow whilst they are closed.

It also said an extension of the furlough scheme for pubs could be pivotal in saving millions of jobs created by the sector.

Chief executive Emma McClarkin said: “We all want to get back to the Great British Pub but fully understand they need to re-open under safe and sustainable conditions - both for their staff and customers.”

‘Big concern is a second peak’

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has signalled a cautious approach to easing lockdown measures, amid fears of a second deadly wave of infections.

Mr Johnson is said to be concerned about another peak in Covid-19 cases if restrictions are relaxed too quickly.

Mr Johnson is at Chequers recovering from his time in intensive care with the disease, according to his official spokesman. But he has spoken to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who continues to deputise for him, and senior members of his team while receiving updates on the coronavirus response.

A Downing Street spokesman told PA news agency: “The big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy.”

The spokesman suggested that restrictions could be modified rather than lifted entirely, adding: “If you move too quickly, that could lead to the virus spreading exponentially again.” The lockdown is scheduled to be reviewed again by May 7.

From the Dover Mercury, 11 November, 2020.

Sheps counts the cost of lockdown.

Brewery Shepherd Neame says the first national lockdown was "profoundly expensive" as it recorded a loss of £12.1million in its annual financial figures for the year up to June 27.

Chief executive of the Faversham firm, which runs pubs and hotels across the South East, Jonathan Neame, explained:- "I don’t think the company has ever declared a loss before.

"A large proportion is a paper loss as we’ve had to write down some assets. So its a £2.9m actual operating loss underlying with £9m additional losses on top.

"Now, we are most focused on our ability to recover."

While coastal pubs fared well when restrictions were eased during the summer, town and city centre venues felt the strain and he admitted it will be disposing of three of its London pubs.

From the Dover Mercury, 28 November, 2020.

Police give ‘knife wands’ to help bars

A knife wand is presented to Rhino and Bull's in Dover.

Knife wands have been handed out to 10 pubs and bars in Dover and Deal to stop dangerous objects being taken in.

It’s hoped use of the metal detecting devices will stop people from carrying weapons in the towns.

P.C. Dannii Rolfe, of Dover’s community safety unit, said:- "There is no excuse for carrying a weapon of any kind in Kent and we will seek the prosecution of anyone who does so.

"We are very pleased with the response from staff in bars and pubs in Dover and Deal and welcome their help, along with partner agencies, in our ongoing work to confront the issue."

The initiative was funded by the Dover Community Safety Partnership with funds from the Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) and Kent crime commissioner Matthew Scott has welcomed the introduction.