Pubs are vital social lifeline — report

July 3, 2008: Leading social scientists have proved that the survival of the great British pub is a matter of national significance, with pubs providing a "vital social lifeline" to over 11 million Britons in local communities up and down the country.

A landmark new report by leading social anthropologist Kate Fox and her team at the Oxford-based Social Issues Research Centre has examined the role of the British pub in 21st century Britain.

Findings shows that the pub plays an essential role in keeping local communities, family relationships, working relationships and ‘sociable networks’ alive in a society that is becoming increasingly fragmented by virtual communities.

Key findings of the social study, commissioned by pub group Greene King, show:

l The pub is seen as an essential part of community life by one in four Britons

l The pub is seen as the ultimate leveller where social barriers are broken down and builders stand side by side with barristers. Almost a third of Britons believe the pub is the only place where it is possible to forge new relationships regardless of social status, age, class, job, race or background, while one in five meet people they wouldn’t normally come across in other social settings

l The pub is one of the only environments in which Britons feel confident to strike up conversations with complete strangers — more than a quarter of us (26%) feel comfortable chatting to strangers in our local, while one in 10 have made lifelong friends as a result of a casual conversation in the pub

l More than two-thirds believe the pub acts as a completely ”neutral social space” — no-one has to play host which means it is more relaxing and particularly stress-free for “family bonding”

While virtual networks such as Facebook and MySpace are creating new communities of interest and friendship groups, particularly among younger people, the study found that these new means of communication were not stopping people from increasingly going to pubs to build and strengthen their social relationships.

A third of 18- to 24-year olds (31%) say that online interaction will never be able to compete with real encounters with friends, family and new acquaintances in the pub, while one in four young people use virtual social networks as a means to boost their get-togethers at pubs.

Kate Fox, who worked with Desmond Morris on his Pub Watching study in the early 1990s, said The Great British Pub Report shows how unique the pub remains in British culture.

“While many people bemoan the breakdown of community in Britain, the local pub continues to serve as a hub for sociability and the bringing together of people from different walks of life in a way that no other social institution can," she said.

"British people feel very strongly about the pub and its place in the nation’s infrastructure, as well as the individual communities all pubs serve. They really are a vital social lifeline.”

The report reveals that many Britons believe pubs are now responsible for boosting family life in the UK, particularly when it comes to getting different generations together. A third of people quizzed said meeting up with brothers, sisters and in-laws in the pub led to fewer family rows because it is “neutral territory”. More than 40% also voted the pub better for family get-togethers than hosting at home.

Other key findings included:

l The pub is believed to provide a vital bridge to the growing gap between generations — a third of young people say their only interaction with people from older generations in a social setting happens in the pub (30%)

l Pubs are also increasingly vital in leading to participation among young people. A quarter of 18- to 24-year olds join in activities and teams at their local pub

l 16.3 million Britons (40%) have a portfolio of pubs that they rely on for interaction with different social groups on different occasions — from places after work to moan about their boss to romantic pubs for a drink with a date

Greene King chief executive Rooney Anand said the study — a combination of polling and focus groups among pubgoers — showed the role of the pub remained strong, despite challenges the industry faces in the current climate and in the post smoking-ban era.

He said: “Pubs may have a tradition that goes back centuries, but it is the future that matters most. The message from this research is extremely positive: it shows that the pub is not only relevant now, but that its appeal is abiding over time.

"The demand for great community pubs is not about to disappear. In fact, with all the social and demographic changes going on, and all the findings about the importance of pubs to families and mixed generations, its role is likely to become even more important.

“As the economic status of women has changed, pubs have improved enormously in order to attract their custom — and the number of women and families visiting pubs has increased again since the smoking ban.

"While the landscape is changing, what is not altering is the centuries-old premise of the pub — that it is a place where friends and communities come together and feel they belong. That was most evident for us during last year’s floods where many of our pubs acted as community centres for people facing terrible conditions.

“You would have thought that the rise in virtual communities would be denting the pub’s appeal, but far from it. Young adults, who have especially embraced the online world more than anyone, are using new means of communication to arrange face-to-face meetings down their local.

"This report shows that while sites such as Facebook are strong social networks, the pub, which has been around for centuries, remains the primary sociable network for people in the UK. Our aim at Greene King has always been to run great pubs where people come to eat, drink and socialise in a truly unique way.”

The report also showed that the majority of young people have alternative ‘OAP friends’ at pubs… and that has nothing to do with older generations. The term — Only At Pub — refers to people they meet and class as exclusively “pub friends”.

Kate Fox added: “You might spend the night putting the world to rights with John the Bandit or Big Dave, but you wouldn’t invite them to dinner or go on holiday with them. The pub allows pub friends to enjoy a level of fraternity but places no expectation on developing the friendship further. Nowhere else does that happen.”