The Plunkett Foundation has been given a £3.3m government grant to help 50 communities set up and run community-owned pubs.

The Foundation, which helps rural communities improve facilities and services through community ownership, has been awarded the grant as part of pubs minister John Healey’s Community-Owned Pubs Programme, a new government initiative to save community pubs. At the moment up to 40 pubs are closing each week.

Plunkett chief executive Peter Couchman said:  “Pubs are vitally important to communities. They provide places where people can come together to socialise and join in a number of community activities.

“Community ownership can secure the future of pubs, just as it is doing for village shops, through harnessing the creativity and energy of a whole community. We’re delighted with the announcement of the support to help set up community-owned pubs and this, we believe, will make a real and lasting difference to communities.”

The Community-Owned Pubs Programme, led by the Plunkett Foundation and developed with the Office of the Third Sector, will be delivered in partnership with organisations with experience enabling community-ownership including Pub is the Hub, Co-operative and Community Finance, Co-operatives UK, CAMRA and the Co-operative Development Network.