Independent pub group, Oakman Inns, the owners of five popular family-friendly pubs in Hertfordshire (Kings Arms, Berkhamsted, Banyers House, Royston, Beech House, St Albans, Red Lion, Water End and The Akeman, Tring) has been nominated for four awards at the prestigious Publican Awards, the largest celebration of the UK pub industry’s work. The ceremony will take place in March 2019 at Battersea Evolution in London.
Oakman Inns has been nominated for:
The Best Managed Pub Company (2-50 sites): the award being presented to a highly successful managed retail estate with between 2 and 50 sites, which has shown strong innovation and business performance in the past year.
The Pub Employer (501+ employees): This award will be presented to the pub company that provides an excellent working environment for employees including comprehensive training, strong staff motivation and benefits. The company will also provide a meaningful career path and development structure for their employees.
The Best Sustainable Pub Company Award will be presented to a pub company that has demonstrated a significant and concerted effort to reduce its waste. This includes the reduction and/or redistribution of food waste; energy reduction and management; plastics and single use items. Oakman Inns was the first multiple site pub group to ban plastic straws over two years ago, and last year committed to cutting Single Use Plastics throughput its business by 2019.
Finally, Oakman has also been nominated for their biggest pub venture to date in The Best New Pub/Bar category for The Royal Foresters in Ascot, Berkshire. Representing a £10m investment, the pub with 23 boutique rooms, re-opened in July and immediately enjoyed the wide support of both the surrounding villages and local communities, tourists and the visiting racing industry who enjoy The Royal Foresters’ hospitality during Ascot racedays or Tattersalls bloodstock sales.
Oakman Inns’ CEO, Peter Borg-Neal, said: “Every year we aspire to win recognition for our work and, more importantly, of our team’s efforts in keeping our pubs among the best in the country. These nominations cover the pantheon of management and community endeavours which every one of my team undertakes every day. It recognises our staff mentoring, training and development programmes; the environmental agenda which helps us to be more sustainable every year – which can help our environment as well as our communities. Finally, they recognise all our site and area managers whose performance is the bit that our customers experience every day and which I believe has been exemplary this year. They all make me very proud.”
