There's A Government-Funded Phone Line For People Worried Their Pub Is Closing Down

The British government is helping fund a telephone support line for people who are worried their local pub might be closing down.

Community Pubs Minister Kris Hopkins says an extra £50,000 will be spent on the service, which is run by rural support organisation the Plunkett Foundation.

The group provides "community enterprise experts" to help locals set up cooperatives and take over their pubs if the area's alcohol supply is under threat. Hopkins says hundreds of drinking spots have been protected under the scheme.

For residents to save their establishments there's also a how-to guide, published by Pub is the Hub - another organisation supported by the government's Department for Communities and Local Government.

Hopkins, MP for Keighley in West Yorkshire, announced the funding in a statement on Tuesday and comments: "The great British pub is a national treasure, playing a crucial role at the heart of our communities, while providing thousands of jobs and boosting the economy by £21 billion a year.

"A lot of hard work has been put in by communities up and down the country to protect their beloved local from sell off and I am delighted we have passed this latest milestone of 500 pubs being afforded protection."

When talking, Hopkins was visiting the Fox and Goose in Hebden Bridge, a pub dating back to 1702 that many people feared might shut when the landlady fell ill.

But it's been saved by 262 locals who pitched in to make sure their beer and wine still flows.

Since the recession British pubs have been closing at a rapid rate and it seems the government is now better equipping the public in responding to the crisis. There are now more than 10 policies linked to safeguarding the country's much-loved bars.