The North London Branch of CAMRA is calling for an end of the destructive policies that have annihilated pubs in NW1 and NW5. Over the last 6 months, the Branch has been surveying the pubs in the NW1 and NW5 postal districts and was dismayed to find that the area had lost a quarter of its pubs in the last decade. Of the pubs lost, 49% had been converted to residential use, 10% had been demolished and 17% changed to offices or restaurants. The west part of NW5 has been hit the hardest, losing almost 60% of its pubs.

John Cryne, the Branch Chairman, said “If we carry on losing pubs at this rate, there won’t be any left in 20 years. Too many pub owners have taken a fast buck and sold them for residential use or even demolished them to replace with commercial premises. Pubs are the heart of the community and we can never replace these. We found this out whilst surveying for a guide to the real ale pubs in NW5 and NW1. I must say it was a great shock to see the decline. We are calling on people to lobby their MPs to campaign against the loss of valued community pubs and to support the Sustainable Communities Private Members Bill. This will give local government (and thus local people) a greater say in how central government money is spent locally”.

“We still have some cracking pubs left in these two postal districts covering all sorts of tastes and interests and plenty of history. Try the Camden Arms in Randolph Street, which was the site of the last fatal duel, which has resulted in a ghost in residence or the Globe Tavern in Marylebone Road built in 1753 where the first ever omnibus service used to stop. We have a duty to ensure that this pub heritage is kept alive for the next generation”.

The guide lists over 70 pubs selling real ale in the NW5 and NW1 postal districts. Thanks to support from Wells and Young’s, this pocket sized full colour guide is selling for only £2.00. The guide was being launched on Tuesday 6th March in the Somerstown Coffee House, Chalton Street NW1, itself a pub with plenty of history. The name dates back to the early seventeen hundreds when this site did host a coffee house but this current pub was probably rebuilt in the 1930s.