It is pretty tough in hospitality at the moment, with costs increasing left, right and centre, and the general public tightening their belts at the same time and not spending so much. It’s great therefore that we should take the opportunity to celebrate the best pubs that we have.

Pub of the Year 2026

The most prestigious of CAMRA Awards for pubs is the Pub of the Year competition, which is a nationwide competition to find the country’s best pubs. This starts with each Branch awarding its own Branch Pub of the Year, and this year South Oxfordshire Branch members have voted for their winning pub to be the Cross Keys in Wallingford.

All the 140 or so pubs in the branch area, have been judged by CAMRA members against a range of factors - their atmosphere, welcome, inclusivity, community-focus, service, value for money and, of course most importantly, great cask ales served in excellent condition, preferably coming from some of the 1,600 small, independent, and often local breweries, that have sprung up in the UK in recent years.

The Cross Keys ticks all these boxes and strongly demonstrates what a great pub should be. It was formerly a Brakspear pub, but was bought by the Thame-based pub company, Oak Taverns early in 2022 and reopened with Dave and Emma Howse at the helm (pictured with Branch Chair Graham Hards) in May of that year. The pub has gone from strength to strength ever since, and previously won our Pub of the Year in 2024, but its reputation continues to grow and thankfully it continues to serve a great always varying range of ales, in consistently great condition, alongside it’s house beer Howse Beer, which is a special release of Amwell Springs’ Stay Jammy.

Cider Pub of the Year 2026

CAMRA also supports and promotes proper cider and perry producers, and the pubs that sell their products. Proper cider and perry is made from 100% from squashed apples or pears – not from diluted fruit concentrates or from adding excess sugar to increase alcohol content, processes that most of the big-brand commercial producers use.

CAMRA therefore also has a national competition for the Cider Pub of the Year, to recognise pubs that promote and provide great real ciders, which again starts with branches voting on their own winner – and we are pleased to say that the Cross Keys has carried off this award too!

It is with great pleasure that we present these Awards to Dave and Emma on occasion of being voted winners in South Oxfordshire CAMRA’s overall Pub of the Year 2026 competition and also winner of our Cider Pub of the Year for 2026. Many congratulations to you on these fantastic achievements!

The pub now goes forward into the County and then possibly the Regional phases of both competitions (where it would be competing against the best of the 3,000 or so pubs in Oxfordshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire). This then leads to the National finals later in the year.

Article credit to Graham Hards (Branch Chair)

We are extremely pleased to announce that the Cross Keys, Wallingford has not only been voted as our branch Pub of the Year but also our branch Cider Pub of the Year for 2026!

Huge congratulations to landlord and lady Dave and Emma Howse, who work tirelessly to provide a superb mix of cask ales always in great condition, as well as continue to run a thriving and popular pub with masses of events throughout the year!

The Cross Keys will now go through to the county round of the competition where it will be up against the Butcher’s Arms, Balscote, the Crafty Pint in Witney, and the King’s Arms in Wantage. Best of luck!

Our Wallingford award winners do not stop there either, as we are extremely pleased to announce that our branch Club of the Year for 2026 is the Comrades Club!

The Comrades’ is our first winner for a while and it fully deserves the accolade with 2-3 cask ales always available (4 at busy weekends) as well as 2 real ciders, all to be consumed in extremely comfortable surroundings.

Huge congratulations to Oz and the team!

We are embarking on a festival of certificate presentations on Friday 8th May starting at the Cross Keys shortly after 5pm, and then at the Comrades’ Club at 8pm. We hope you can join us to celebrate!

The Perch & Pike in South Stoke and the Chequers, Berrick Salome have reopened.

The Red Lion, Peppard, has successfully acquired planning permission for an extension, mainly to the kitchen.

The planning application to convert the Crown, Stadhampton, largely to a dwelling has been withdrawn and the pub is back on the market.

The Maltsters Arms, Rotherfield Greys has closed due to heavy losses.

The Coachmakers Arms, Wallingford has been abandoned by the Henley Pub Co and taken on by Gary Flux (It is still owned by Brakspear).

The Royal, Wallingford re-opened on Friday 16th January. It will be run by Lynn, previously of the Coachmakers prior to its takeover by Henley Pub Co. The intention is for the pub to be open 7 days a week and with Rebellion cask ales available.

Phantom Brewery has collapsed, apparently £2M in debt. Consequently, Echoes in Henley has closed too.

The SOX Brewery Taproom in Ipsden is closing on Friday 23rd January. It is not yet known where it will be moving to.

The tenants of the Six Bells, Warborough are working out a six-months’ notice with Brakspear.

B-MAN Brewery is opening a taproom in Salter’s Boatyard near Donnington Bridge, Oxford.

The Old Post Office, Wallingford freehold is on sale for £1.25M.

Landlord changes have taken place at the Miller of Mansfield, Goring and the Station Garden, Didcot.

We understand that the Home Sweet Home, in Roke may have closed once again. Hopefully this is another short-term spell.

There have been few new issues arising this year, but some reported last year are still ongoing. In addition, there are some new opportunities promised by the Government to be more effective in the future.

Stonor Valley

Little movement on The Crown, Pishill over the past year. The ball appears to be in Russell Brand’s court to put forward new proposals or to sell the property. Of the other pubs in the Valley, only the Golden Ball at Lower Assendon is trading at present, with the Rainbow in Middle Assendon closed since the retirement of Curly and Jean Chandler following its sale by Brakspear and the closure of the Five Horseshoes in Maidensgrove. The Quince Tree reappeared on the market during the year, but there do not appear to have been any takers.

The Crown, Stadhampton

The pub remains empty and closed. The planning application to convert the pub into private housing was withdrawn and a new application submitted to split the property into three, with about half of it becoming a three-bedroom house and the other half upstairs private accommodation with a bar downstairs. The latter would be much too small for a viable pub and we have objected to the plans on those grounds. At about the same time, the property has been put on the market with Connells, reportedly for about twice its purchase price. There is, however, no trace of it on Connells website. At the time of writing, the planning application has not been determined.

The John Barleycorn, Goring

Closed around August 2023, the pub was eventually put on the market by Brakspear for £750,000, which seems to be well over any reasonable valuation for a pub. A planning application has now been submitted to turn this Grade II listed pub into a private dwelling. We have objected on the grounds that there is no adequate demonstration that the pub could not be viable under the right management and that a popular tourist spot like Goring ought to be able to support three pubs, especially one of them close to the river.

Brakspear

By far the most numerous pubs in our area are owned and leased or tenanted to licensees by Brakspear. Many of them are in rural locations and small in size. This may go some way to explain the number of their pubs which change licensees quite frequently or which close at relatively short notice. There does, however, appear to be a trend for the company to dispose of many of their smaller or more isolated pubs and to reinvest the proceeds in larger premises with letting accommodation, often in the Cotswolds, and under a managed model. Sales or closures by the company in the past few years include the Rainbow in Middle Assendon, the Five Horseshoes in Maidensgrove, the Red Lion in Blewbury, the Reformation in Gallowstree Common, the Half Moon in Cuxham and the Crown in Nuffield, while there has been a succession of licensees lasting often no more than two years at the New Inn, Kidmore End, the Chequers and Fat Fox in Watlington, the Chequers in Berrick Salome, the Six Bells in Warborough, the John Barleycorn in Goring, the Red Lion in Cholsey and the Perch & Pike in South Stoke.

Even accounting for the difficulties attending small rural pubs in old buildings, this is not an inspiring record and one that does not appear to attach to other pub companies in our area, with some notable exceptions, such as the Bird in Hand (EI Group), Sonning Common, the Horse & Harrow (Admiral), West Hagbourne and the Ferryboat (Star Taverns) in Whitchurch on Thames.

Political Developments

At SODC/Vale of White Horse, the Joint Local Plan is currently stalled in its progress, with the Government-designated Inspector asking for its withdrawal because of inadequate consultation with Oxford City Council. This will delay any improvement to pub protection in our Branch area through local planning policy. There does, however, seem to be a change in attitude to the listing of pubs as ACVs, with the Five Horseshoes at Maidensgrove the latest to be listed (without any involvement by our Branch).

On a national level, large increases in the National Living Wage (particularly for 18 - 21 year olds), employer contributions to National Insurance and Business Rates are having a disproportionately large effect on the hospitality industry, which includes pubs. These increases have more than swallowed up the increase in duty relief for alcohol sold in the on-trade. Some relief on Business Rates was promised in the recent Budget, but it remains to be seen whether the Treasury will see this through.

There are, however, promises of changes to licensing and planning laws, which should reduce the bureaucracy and restrictions associated with opening and operating pubs as well as introducing a “Right to Buy” for community groups when ACV-listed premises come onto the market, as well as changes to the legislation surrounding ACV listing, including a right to appeal against refusal of a listing.

Reproduced with permission (and appreciation) from David Cooper, Branch Pub Protection Officer