Why are so many pubs in Slough closing down or struggling?

As more pubs are financially pushed into closure the remaining businesses are becoming more creative in how they draw their punters in.

Arlene Pooni, 60, manages The Stag at Stoke Poges and has seen her footfall drop by an estimated 20 per cent to just five to 10 regular customers.

She said: "I think we have recovered from Covid and the tolls from that.

"We got back on our feet and then the energy crisis hit and the products we sell rose."

Arlene says the pub has especially felt the price rise of oil and food.

"Pub prices go up and people do complain," she added. "They have less disposable income.

"People do not have the money they did before and the first thing they cut back on is going out."

As a result, The Stag is regularly rotating deals on food and drink which aim to make the pub experience more affordable to visitors.

Arlene saw a notable drop in footfall over Christmas as people opted to stay home.

The Stag has begun hosting garden parties, alongside sports and entertainment to bring people in.

The Campaign for Real Ale estimated that at the end of 2023, there was just one pub per 9,816 people in Slough.

The Three Tuns and The Herschel Arms were two big names that left central Slough last year.

Tom King, who owned The Herschel Arms for nearly three decades said its closure was down to an "inability to agree" on rent. He added: "Rents have gone mad everywhere."

Arlene said she was "not surprised" to hear there were such few pubs remaining - but "never thought The Three Tuns would go".

"A lot of businesses are struggling and can't survive," she added. "I think the government could be more supportive.

"The old notion of pubs has gone, people can get cheaper things from the supermarket now.

"You have to be doing something else to survive like food. We can't compete"

A punter at The Stag, Iain Allan, 59, said: "The pub helps bring the community together. When they shut people disperse and you never see them again."

A recent investigation by ITV News found that young people are "swapping nightlife for pottery events and morning runs".

The reporter was told: "It's not the same anymore". 

Another young adult said: "I don't want to go out and then have two or three days struggling with a hangover. It is interesting to do something different and be able to function the next day."

With many working from home on Friday, there is less incentive to go out - with people becoming more conscious of their health.

The Wheatsheaf on Albert Street in Slough still relies on alcohol and sport showings to draw in crowds - with no food served on site.

Leonard Gibson, 57, has been the manager of The Wheatsheaf since 2011.

"Considering we don't do food we are doing okay. We seemed busier after lockdown and our regulars came back in droves.

"People kept coming back. I would say 75 per cent of our customers are regulars.

"We show sports, but not Sky as that is too expensive.

"We have bands monthly and just did a charity event at Easter which we have done for the last 12-13 years for Teenage Cancer Trust. We have raised about £15,000 over the years."

Leonard says like many pubs, he is struggling with rising costs - which he believes are 10 per cent higher than they were a decade ago.

"I am regularly arguing with breweries over their prices, but they say they maintain the building and that is the prices we need to pay," Leonard said.

However, Leonard was glad when Fuller's, the brewery who own The Wheatsheaf, cancelled the pub's rent through lockdown while the business was forced to close.

Footfall in The Wheatsheaf has now surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

"Some of the pubs in the area have closed and people have been coming from there," Leonard said.

"I was shocked when the Herschel Arms closed. The Three Tuns was mainly a food pub. The Rising Sun was knocked down and nothing has happened since.

"It makes you worry about what is happening in the area."

Leonard took over the running of the pub from his wife's brother - keeping the business in the family.

Speaking of what could help the business he said: "It would help if prices were reduced for everything. People want us to get Sky TV but it is too expensive. The brewery lorry prices and reducing taxes and VAT on things.

"Utilities have gone up but so far so good - being busier helps."

He added that working in a pub is "more of a lifestyle than a job". 

CAMRA National Chairman Nik Antona, previously told The Observer: "The recent spate of closures in Slough is, unfortunately, reflective of the struggles of the licensed trade across the whole of the UK.

“The reason behind these closures cannot be identified as one single issue, but instead it is the amalgamation of a whole torrent of challenges that pubs and social clubs, along with the breweries and cider makers who serve them, are currently swimming upstream against.

“Pubs, social clubs and taprooms need support from the government now more than ever if they are to survive and thrive."