Heineken announces £1.64m investment in Yorkshire and Humber to upgrade and reopen pubs

Heineken says the move will create 37 jobs in Yorkshire and the Humber, and an estimated 1,075 new jobs across the UK.

The company said that a further £90,000 will also be invested by licensees across Yorkshire and the Humber.

Lawson Mountstevens, Star Pubs’ managing director, said: “People are looking for maximum value from visits to their local. They want great surroundings and food and drink as well as activities that give them an extra reason to go out, such as sports screenings and entertainment. Creating fantastic locals that can accommodate a range of occasions meets this need and helps pubs fulfil their role as vital third spaces where communities can come together.

“Pubs have proved their enduring appeal; after all the disruption of recent years, Star is on track to have the lowest number of long-term closed pubs since 2019. It’s a tribute to the drive and entrepreneurship of licensees and the importance of continued investment.”

Mr Mountstevens added that the firm had spent over £200m maintaining and upgrading its pubs over the last five years.

A quarter – just over 610 – of HEINEKEN UK’s 2,400 pubs are in line for improvement nationally, with 94 of these set for makeovers costing on average £200,000.

One pub that has benefited from this investment is The Ship, in Worsbrough, Barnsley. A £370,000 refurbishment reopened The Ship in February 2024 following a four-and-a-half-year closure, creating 11 jobs. A community local specialising in entertainment and sport, The Ship serves drinks only and has bar and lounge areas plus a games zone kitted out with pool, darts and screens showing Sky sports.

The pub also holds coffee mornings for senior citizens, care home residents and mother and toddler groups and has football, darts and pool teams. It also puts on charity fundraisers and provides meeting space for local groups. In the evenings, the pub holds a weekly quiz, bingo, karaoke and live music nights.

New licensee, Rebecca Skelly, said: “The Ship needed a complete facelift to get customers back – a lick of paint wouldn’t have cut it. The smart new design has been key to converting residents into regulars. The Ship is proof of the need and demand for traditional locals. It’s part of the town’s history.

“Everyone comes here, from families with children to retirees – it’s a social hub, especially for the neighbourhood’s senior citizens, many of whom sat at home alone before The Ship opened again.”

Heineken said that with working from home more commonplace and people looking to save on travel, major refurbishments will concentrate on transforming tired pubs in suburban areas into premium locals.

The firm added that the revamps are designed to “broaden each pub’s use and appeal, giving people additional reasons to visit”.

Other common changes will include overhauling cellars with state-of-the-art dispense equipment to ensure “consistently perfect pints” and repositioning tills to speed up service.

As part of Heineken’s ambition to achieve net zero across its entire value chain by 2040, projects will feature energy efficiency measures, such as heating controls, insulation and low- energy lighting, that will typically cost £12,500 per pub and cut energy use by 15 per cent.