Cambria pub in Loughborough Junction is closed and boarded up

[editor]

Another one bites the dust

The Cambria pub in Loughborough Junction seems to have closed down

 

[Pickman's model]

GASTROGLAMOUR LTD | Resolutions for Winding-up | The Gazette

 

[editor]

View attachment 186418
GASTROGLAMOUR LTD | Resolutions for Winding-up | The Gazette

Thanks for that - I've added it to the article

 

[colacubes]

I can’t quote cos my phone’s being a dick but see last page of Loughborough Junction chat thread. It seems the brewery are intending to refurbish and reopen.

 

[editor]

I can’t quote cos my phone’s being a dick but see last page of Loughborough Junction chat thread. It seems the brewery are intending to refurbish and reopen.

Let's hope that happens. There's a long history of pubs being earmarked for reopening and then being flogged off

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

I've not been for a few years but it used to be a good pub, I hope it reopens.

I know all sorts of pubs are struggling but the backstreet pub seems to be in danger of extinction doesn't it.

 

[shakespearegirl]

It was struggling even when I left LJ 7 years ago. Over the 10 years I lived there it had lots of problems. I remember generators being used back then.. I used to really like it, but there were def some owner/manager issues

 

[ChrisSouth]

It was struggling even when I left LJ 7 years ago. Over the 10 years I lived there it had lots of problems. I remember generators being used back then.. I used to really like it, but there were def some owner/manager issues

Everything about your post is untrue. It wasn't struggling 7 years ago. And as you'd lived there for 10 years, you would have seen what a great community asset it had become with the Cambria Choir, life drawing classes, regular pub quizzes, legendary lock ins and weekend drag. And even before that time, it was a great back street pub, divided into a public bar, a saloon bar and a snug, which was frequented by 3 old gents who used to play great games of dominoes. The first time a generator was used was this summer, because the people running the pub had not paid their bill.

 

[shakespearegirl]

I’m not saying it wasn’t a great pub, I really liked it. But I definitely remember them using a generator before having not paid the electricity bills!

 

[shakespearegirl]

It holds a special place in my heart as part 2 of my first date with my husband, 1st part at the Canton Arms

 

[teuchter]

I already posted this on the LJ thread the other day:

Many residents have asked about The Cambria, particularly after the activity today (see photograph attached).

It had become rundown and Punch Taverns sought eviction. Non-payment of food and electricity bills had exacerbated matters as well as the installation of a generator which was not realistic long-term.

Advice to landlord was given by Punch Taverns, a Possession application was approved in August, a High Court Possession Order was eventually issued, the occupants evicted and steps taken to remove the generator.

Legal proceedings were already in play by the time Lambeth Council got involved to address the environmental concerns raised, after complaints about the rubbish, noise, smell and a generator outside.

Whilst legal proceedings were initiated by the freeholder following breach of contractual terms by the leaseholder, the Council decided not to issue a S.47 order but instead conditions were incorporated into a Community Protection Warning and a Community Protection Notice was served.

Punch Taverns cannot sell off the site for shops or flats without applying for planning permission. This is not their plan and they intend to refurbish the pub and already have another landlord in mind. Let's hope that works out and attracts back its customers.

Yours

Becca Thackray


Councillor, Herne Hill Ward

 

[CH1]

I already posted this on the LJ thread the other day:

She's not 100% correct on that. Tescos have relied many times on their ability to change pub premises into mini supermarkets. Apparently there is no bar to changing to a less onerous classification i.e. pub to shop.

If the Cambria had living accommodation above it seems likely that even flats would be permissible in this case. (Not wanting to teach my grandmother to suck eggs and all that).

BTW can anyone say whether the Cambria is part of the Punch Tavern network securitised to Heineken, or the bit securitised to Patron Capital?
Patron Capital and Heineken buy £1.8bn Punch Taverns

 

[teuchter]

She's not 100% correct on that. Tescos have relied many times on their ability to change pub premises into mini supermarkets. Apparently there is no bar to changing to a less onerous classification i.e. pub to shop.

If the Cambria had living accommodation above it seems likely that even flats would be permissible in this case. (Not wanting to teach my grandmother to suck eggs and all that).

BTW can anyone say whether the Cambria is part of the Punch Tavern network securitised to Heineken, or the bit securitised to Patron Capital?
Patron Capital and Heineken buy £1.8bn Punch Taverns

I think she's correct in saying that they can't do it without planning permission. Whether it turns out to be true that they aren't considering trying to do it - who knows.

 

[teuchter]

Everything about your post is untrue. It wasn't struggling 7 years ago. And as you'd lived there for 10 years, you would have seen what a great community asset it had become with the Cambria Choir, life drawing classes, regular pub quizzes, legendary lock ins and weekend drag. And even before that time, it was a great back street pub, divided into a public bar, a saloon bar and a snug, which was frequented by 3 old gents who used to play great games of dominoes. The first time a generator was used was this summer, because the people running the pub had not paid their bill.

It's certainly been struggling for the last couple of years at least. It used to be somewhere you could go to get some food without booking or checking first, but it became increasingly erratic - you'd turn up and they'd not have the kitchen open. So, I started going to the Junction instead which has a much better atmosphere and isn't too expensive. The only thing that would really attract me back to the Cambria was their beer garden, nice for sitting outside in the summer and something the Junction doesn't have. But more recently you could hardly rely on them being open at all, let alone doing food.

Also haven't really forgiven them for getting rid of the quite nice old sign with the sailing ship and replacing it with the stupid black and gold stuff that just made it look like an anywhere-pub.

 

[ChrisSouth]

It's certainly been struggling for the last couple of years at least. It used to be somewhere you could go to get some food without booking or checking first, but it became increasingly erratic - you'd turn up and they'd not have the kitchen open. So, I started going to the Junction instead which has a much better atmosphere and isn't too expensive. The only thing that would really attract me back to the Cambria was their beer garden, nice for sitting outside in the summer and something the Junction doesn't have. But more recently you could hardly rely on them being open at all, let alone doing food.

Also haven't really forgiven them for getting rid of the quite nice old sign with the sailing ship and replacing it with the stupid black and gold stuff that just made it look like an anywhere-pub.

I agree. It's been pants for a couple of years, and really rubbish for the last 18 months and just looked run down and neglected. I think the resurgent Sun also did for it. But it's had tonnes of local support and just needs to get its act back together, I hope.

 

[editor]

I agree. It's been pants for a couple of years, and really rubbish for the last 18 months and just looked run down and neglected. I think the resurgent Sun also did for it. But it's had tonnes of local support and just needs to get its act back together, I hope.

Thing is, everything was in place for it to be a successful pub. It looked great inside and for a while seemed quite engaged with the local community, with the choir and lots of events. They stopped advertising events ages ago, and whenever I went past sport seemed the the one thing they were pinning their hopes on.

 

[ChrisSouth]

Thing is, everything was in place for it to be a successful pub. It looked great inside and for a while seemed quite engaged with the local community, with the choir and lots of events. They stopped advertising events ages ago, and whenever I went past sport seemed the the one thing they were pinning their hopes on.

I agree. What was lovely about it was that it was a non-sport pub. Steve and Amy who rebooted it around 2005 or so finally left circa 2016 I think, and it lost its way quite dramatically. Up until then, in all its incarnations, it had been a great local pub.

 

[Spendthrift]

Has anyone heard any more about this? I contacted Punch Taverns who said they have sold it on to another group called Star Pubs and Bars. I haven't had a response from them yet...

 

[CH1]

Has anyone heard any more about this? I contacted Punch Taverns who said they have sold it on to another group called Star Pubs and Bars. I haven't had a response from them yet...

Star Pubs and Bars seems to be part of Heineken. I guess they will be selling Brixton Brewery stuff when they relaunch the Cambria.

 

[Spendthrift]

That would be a decent result. Fingers crossed.

 

[teuchter]

Proposal for a community pub -

THE CAMBRIA SOCIETY

Introduction The Cambria Society aims to revive a local pub focussed on cultivating the quintessential pub environment, but also function as a communal space for the diverse locality. The pub boasts a beautiful, spacious bar, beer garden and a large function room upstairs that could be utilised...

docs.google.com

 

[cuppa tee]

Proposal for a community pub -

THE CAMBRIA SOCIETY

Introduction The Cambria Society aims to revive a local pub focussed on cultivating the quintessential pub environment, but also function as a communal space for the diverse locality. The pub boasts a beautiful, spacious bar, beer garden and a large function room upstairs that could be utilised...

docs.google.com

looks interesting, is the plan to buy the building or buy the tenancy off whoever owns the building currently ?

 

[teuchter]

I don't know any more than is in that statement I'm afraid.

There is also currently a planning application for some alterations to the garden area

21/02994/FUL | Alterations to existing rear external drinking area including the installation of raised patio, new pergola and bin storage. | The Cambria 40 Kemerton Road London SE5 9AR

The applicant is this company

Star Pubs

Make Your Mark with Star Pubs. Welcome to Star Pubs, the pub business of HEINEKEN UK.

www.starpubs.co.uk

Not sure if that indicates there is also someone commercially interested in it.

 

[cuppa tee]

I don't know any more than is in that statement I'm afraid.

There is also currently a planning application for some alterations to the garden area

21/02994/FUL | Alterations to existing rear external drinking area including the installation of raised patio, new pergola and bin storage. | The Cambria 40 Kemerton Road London SE5 9AR

The applicant is this company

Star Pubs

Make Your Mark with Star Pubs. Welcome to Star Pubs, the pub business of HEINEKEN UK.

www.starpubs.co.uk

Not sure if that indicates there is also someone commercially interested in it.

That’s Heineken’s pub/property division according to the link you posted
they are recruiting licensees on that website too,
so I guess any community pub would be leased off Heineken
and the community shareholders would be paying the rent
the community group would need a named license holder to run the place
could make a nice tie in with the Heineken owned Brixton Brewery just up the road
<edit> just saw the post by CH1 which makes a similar point...

 

[teuchter]

If there are people willing to put in their own time and work to run it as a community pub - good luck to them. If it looks like it's viable to reopen as a conventional, commercially operated pub then I would have to ask what's to be gained by going the community route. Either way it would be good to see it come back to life again.

 

[cuppa tee]

If there are people willing to put in their own time and work to run it as a community pub - good luck to them. If it looks like it's viable to reopen as a conventional, commercially operated pub then I would have to ask what's to be gained by going the community route. Either way it would be good to see it come back to life again.

Yes I agree
!

 

[teuchter]

Just walked past - there is building work going on now. The garden is all cleared out and the ground floor pub area is gutted back to bare brickwork.

 

[cuppa tee]

bare brickwork.

pub fit out de jour ?