Nearly 1 million people make a pint in a pub possible.
The pub is the beating heart of communities across the whole of Britain.
But outside its walls, there are nearly a million people behind your pint who take it from hop to glass, including delivery drivers, farmers, logistics workers, brewers, technicians, cleaners and of course the bar staff who hand you your pint.
I'm a brewing technician and I've been doing it for just over two years. I've produced some beers and it’s been quite exciting to be part of the design team and developing new products. That’s the best part - seeing what you've made in the pub and seeing the finished product. It gives you a real sense of pride that you’re producing something that people are enjoying.
My local is an old Edwardian pub, the Alexandra in Edgley. So it's a nice bit of history. And it's still a focal point of the community. If I go, I tend to know someone who's there, which is always a nice thing. We can't lose pubs like that - it's like having a house knocked down.
I worked as security for nearly four years at the brewery, but I always had an interest in how the beer is made, so when an opportunity arose, I took the chance in getting a full time job at the brewery. I work on the back shift, loading the dray wagons for the next day deliveries.
The best part of my job is operating the clamp truck and seeing how the beers are kegged, bottled and loaded. I feel part of a good team who work together to get the job done and each day is a little different, and there’s a lot of exciting innovation happening with new sites being built, and new equipment coming in.
It makes me really proud that I've worked here over 10 years. I started as a tour guide in the visitor centre and now I'm a brewery safety advisory. There's a huge amount of hazards - manual handling, working chemicals working at height, vehicle movement. I do love my job - I can walk around the brewery and I know everyone by name. I take that role really seriously and there's a personal touch.
What's becoming clearer with changes to the high street and the way people do their shopping is the importance of having a third space for people to go to and how important that is for a community. But also for people's mental health, to know there's a local where a barman knows your name - that can make a huge difference to people. It’s a warm space which is important from a cost of living crisis perspective, and they should be protected.
I started at the cask and keg plant when I was 19 and I've been with the company nearly 30 years. I moved to the brewhouse tun room - that’s where all the yeast is and where all the fermentation happens. Back in 2000 we had the new brewhouse installed and that made work a lot easier because back then it was a lot more manual and hands on, but the new system that went in is automatic.
I'm proud of being part of a company that’s doing well for themselves and has done for 300 years. There could be something different every day within the brewhouse - that’s what’s exciting. Making beer is the part I enjoy the most. It’s nice to go out and see people drinking what you make. You get a thrill out of it. I go to my local because I enjoy taking the time out, meeting with friends, some chilling out time. I like it because it's right along the river which is really nice.
I have worked here for over 18 years, the last 10 years being in the position of Back-shift Chargehand (supervising the loading and unloading of the vehicles in the warehouses). I enjoy working here because it’s a family run business, and they take a genuine interest in you so you are able to better yourself, should you wish to.
The best part of the job is knowing that all our products that we made are being delivered to the customers. It’s good to support your local pub - the Farmers Arms in Poynton gets involved with local charitable events and is seen as the hub of the community.
I’ve been in the industry for 21 years now. I started as an agency worker picking up every single role I could possibly get, and six months ago I became the interim manager in the department for Cask and Keg. I’ve been looking after the keg since day one when it was first put into the brewery actually.
I just love working with the team that I’ve got, and the machinery. I like knowing that everything I'm sending out to the customers is perfect, so they can enjoy a nice pint, making sure that they get everything they need and they're not sitting in a pub with a pint that they don't like - and we don't want them running out.
From my point of view pubs are a good social place to gather. So if the pubs weren't there, where would you meet your friends? Where would you just go and have a social gathering, or a talk? I wouldn’t be here if this job didn’t mean a lot to me.
We've been in this industry for about 20 years. We are trying to make sure that people that come through this door are having the best time. You are acting as the centre of the community. People come here every day, looking for escape, looking for that quality of little chats and being away from wives, husbands, children. You listen to their life worries and everything, and you just try to comfort people in the best way that you can.
You start reading customers as soon as they come through the door, you're trying to figure out, do they want to chat, don't want to chat. And I think what's so amazing is that, this is my stage. And I love that part of it - almost challenging myself with, did you make it right?
I start early, come in, sort barrels out, sort the empties. Make sure the bar’s fully stocked, do a bit of general tidying up, do a stock count, check orders, and then get ready for service.
Working in a pub should be national service, you know, to see how a pub is run. It's a good way of making friends, bringing people together. We get a lot of young staff working here, who are dead shy when they start out, and it really brings them out of their shell.
I have worked in farms all my life, it’s in my blood. I'm very fortunate to have taken over the family business when I was 26.
Harvest season is quite stressful in many ways with the weight of the hops hanging in the hop gardens, and at certain times it is a lot of hours, long days, but my staff are very good and understand what is required to achieve what we need to achieve each season. I employ a small group of local people for my regular workforce and we work well as a team. The enjoyable side is when you have a good day, picking good quality crops, and staff are happy. But having the opportunity to work outside is the best part of my job.
I don't drink a lot but I enjoy drinking good beer, particularly in the winter months. If I know my hops are in a particular beer I will make every effort to try it and I feel very proud to have my product in a beer. I'm equally proud when I can stand in my hop gardens and there's a lovely crop hanging there.
As planning manager at the brewery I consider everything that goes on around us, from the people, to the process and the timing and everything. I sort of have eyes across the brewery to make sure we get perfect quality beer right on time when the customer wants it.
You can see how you can go from nothing to something that's really valued by customers - it’s fascinating. It's quite a feeling just to know that you’re making all that happen.
I started out in 2014 as a tour guide and worked my way up to brands and marketing manager. The best part about my job is definitely that I get to work with so many interesting people across the brewery and pubs, and I get to hear about the designs I helped bring to life.
It's the oldest brewery in Britain, but it’s like a living thing that understands that people's tastes change, and the market and consumers are evolving, and we have to evolve with them and I think that's one of the beautiful things about it. But it’s definitely the people that make this brewery. I think that's a real key point to me - it's not just a faceless entity. The brewery is like a grounding force, and all the pubs are like anchor points for the community.
The local near my house is where I spent time as a child and it's actually where my parents met, which is really nice, so it's my favourite. I've been there since I was a tiny child and it's got the best cask ale that I've had, so it's my favourite place to go.
I grew up in a pub so it has always been in my blood - all my family have owned pubs and it's gone on from there. I picked up skills from family members, previous managers and general life skills to get me where I am now.
If I wasn't doing this I would be lost because I wouldn't know what else to do. It's the same for our customers. If you only ever go to the pub every Friday night what else would you do if they all shut? It's a part of your life, part of your social aspect.
We're massively a community hub. We have a quiz night here every monday, book clubs come in, the local runners, the crochet club. I'd love to do a student night one day where we do board games and silly little things.
Every day is different which is a good thing, but we also have a lot of regulars we see everyday. We have the same drayman coming by to deliver the barrels every week. There are also ever changing faces of students and dog walkers that go past, and just general traffic who go past.
I started working at Robinsons in Aug 2022 as a temporary worker, and soon after applied for the permanent position of Top Loader. which is loading the dray wagons on the backshift. I love to drive all of our different wagons - when I had just started here I would always tell my colleagues that I wanted to drive the wagons, and now I have achieved this.
The best part of the job is to make sure all our pubs receive the right orders with the correct products, and the most exciting thing is working together with all my colleagues as a team. There is always something exciting happening and every day is different - no dray load is the same. Right now the installation of a new brewery is underway, and new dray wagons have arrived.
I started working in the Bottling Hall two years ago - I'm actually from a manufacturing background of 16 years before starting here. I was trained on all the bits of machinery to do with bottling - like putting labels on the bottles, and the packaging of the bottles, before sending them out to wherever they go. It feels like a great sense of achievement when something occurs and you can actually fix it and send a perfect bottle out. I like going to my local to socialise and meet new people, and it's nice to see your labels on a bottle and to taste the beer.
I think my team's absolutely fantastic. We've got such a close knit relationship and coming into work every day is such a joy. We have a laugh together and we really help each other. We’re more like a family unit.
Pubs and brewing supports nearly one million jobs across the UK, including farmers growing hops, brewers developing new recipes, scientists working on quality control and logistics teams managing deliveries.
Beyond the UK, millions across the globe enjoy a British beer with friends. The UK is one of the biggest beer exporters in Europe, with British brewers exporting the equivalent of 874 million pints in 2022.
The brewing and pub sector is a core part of the UK economy, supporting £14.3 billion in wages. We want to show the people who make up the large economic figures… to show the passion and skills of those in the sector who make a pint possible, not only to celebrate them and the work which they do to deliver the pint which Brits enjoy with their friends and family, but also to show politicians that support for the sector is support for their voters.
£14.3 billion
in wages.
936,000
jobs.
£26 billion
contributed to the economy every year.
£15 billion
contributed direct to the treasury.
874 million
pints exported to Europe by British brewers in 2022.