Ipswich & East Suffolk CAMRA

05/05/2026

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐥𝐞 𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 - 𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 & 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝!

Ipswich Buses is pleased to again partner with Ipswich & East Suffolk CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) to deliver a programme of Real Ale Runabouts throughout 2026!

Real Ale Runabouts are bus trips to rural pubs in Suffolk & Essex, with each runabout stopping multiple public houses each day.

CAMRA know pubs, and they know ale, so attendees are sure to enjoy scenic locations, a mixture of pubs, with a wide variety of real ale on offer.

The 2026 Real Ale Runabout programme, list of destinations, and more information about the Runabouts can be found on our website or by clicking the following link: https://ipswichbuses.co.uk/blog/article/real-ale-runabouts-2026/

Participants must be aged over 18.

Attendees must drink responsibly.

25/02/2026

Congratulations to our 3 branch Pubs of the Year for 2026. They now move forward to the overall Ipswich and East Suffolk Camra Branch Pub of the Year round, which will be judged over the next few weeks. They are:
Ipswich (Town): Dove Street Inn
Urban: The Bull Inn Woodbridge
Rural: Tattingstone Wheatsheaf

We can also confirm our Cider Pub of the Year for 2026, congratulations to the Theberton Lion

24/02/2026

🍻 The Unpaid Social Workers of Britain 🍻

I’m sick of hearing that pubs are just "places to get a pint." 😤

If you think that, you’ve clearly never stepped foot in a proper local on a Thursday afternoon!

The government loves to talk about 'community hubs' and 'social cohesion.' 🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒

And while traditional community centres do their best with limited budgets, they often feel formal - places you go for a specific appointment or a scheduled class. 🗓️

If they even exist where you are! ❌

The pub, on the other hand, is a living, breathing community centre. Often open 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, funded entirely by the person behind the bar and the locals on the other side. 🦸‍♂️

We provide the warmth, the company, and the connection that the state simply can't replicate in a town hall. 🔥

So let’s call it what it really is:

The Great British Pub is a non-government-funded community centre!

🥺 The Lonely: For some of my regulars, I am the only person they’ll speak to all day. Or all week. I’m the welfare check the council doesn't have the budget for.

✅ The Support Group: Problems get solved over a packet of Scampi Fries that would take six months of "referrals" in the public sector.

📦 The Post Office: How many parcels have I taken in for the village this week? This month?

🔥 The Warm Bank: When people can’t afford the heating, they come here. One diet coke lasts three hours in front of my fireplace.

It’s not about the booze. 🍺🍷🥃

It’s about the connection. 🫂

It’s the only place left where a CEO and a brickie can sit side by side and moan about the weather, as equals. 👨‍💼🧱☔️

We aren't just selling beer; we are anchoring the village. ⚓️

We host the wakes, the birthdays, the "I just lost my job" commiserations, and the "I just got engaged" celebrations. 🥳

If the pubs go, the community doesn't just "move" - it vanishes. 💔

Stop taxing us into the ground while pretending you care about "local spirit." 🤥

You can’t bottle what we do! 🍾

But you’re sure as hell making it impossible to keep the doors open right now. ☠️

Do you agree? Share this post! 🙏

Let’s remind the suits in Whitehall that once the local is gone, it’s gone for good! 😢

13/02/2026

Please email your MP about this. This proposed legislation would make it easier for more pubs to be closed for good.

The Government are trying to water down planning protections for pubs meaning more could be lost forever.Use CAMRA's quick template tool to ask your local MP to protect our pubs in the planning system.

28/01/2026

Pubs have much more value than the taxes they raise.

27/01/2026

Would like to hear views on this. Particularly from anyone in the trade

🍺 Publicans need certainty, not another long wait. Today's business rates announcement didn't fix the problem.

😡 While it's a positive the Government has listened to the outcry, pubs still haven't received the permanently lower business rates bills that they so desperately need.

👉Read in full here: https://camra.org.uk/media-centre/press-releases/more-temporary-relief-for-pubs-short-term-and-short-sighted-camra-93813

⬇️ Here's our comment ⬇️

27/01/2026

Interested to hear any views from anyone in the trade about this latest news after rather a long wait. Is it enough / too little / way off?

I have my doubts as to whether it’s going to be much help, but it’d be good to hear from anyone. We’ll probably get approached by the press over this. As a national campaign we will continue to lobby parliament for business rates reform, rest assured of that.

Pubs given support package after business rates backlash

Treasury Minister Dan Tomlinson says the three-year aid was worth £1,650 for the average pub.