Now the smoke has cleared...

The facts surrounding the smoking ban are slowly beginning to emerge.

Three months into England¹s smoking ban ­ and six months into the ban in Wales ­ exclusive research carried out among 500 licensees for The Publican and Britvic has begun to pinpoint the trading opportunities for pubs.

And there is a growing positive mood coming back from the trade ahead of the winter months, with three out of four (73 per cent) licensees saying they would not like to see the ban overturned. It¹s clear that publicans are waking up to the fact that there is more to trading under the ban than simply keeping smokers happy.

While most pubs say they have catered for smokers, and 95 per cent report they have a smoking area, a large number of these admit it is little more than the pavement outside the pub.

How many prospective new customers are being put off by this is difficult to quantify.

But we do know that non-smokers are slowly beginning to come into the pub, with a quarter of pubs (25 per cent) reporting they are seeing new regulars since the ban.

One of the challenges for licensees is to keep the new customers coming, while holding on to the existing customer base.

Some of the strongest trends to emerge from the research have come from Wales ­ could this be because the true impact of the ban is becoming more apparent, six months in?

A family affair​

Much of the mantra surrounding the end of smoking in pubs has been about the growing family opportunity. Across our total sample, fewer than 10 per cent of pubs have seen a significant increase in families coming in since the ban ­ but the figure rises significantly for pubs to the west of Offa¹s Dyke.

One in four (26 per cent) pubs in Wales has seen an increase in families coming into the pub since April 1.

Moreover, a larger proportion of pubs in Wales ­ 28 per cent ­ is seeing regular new customers since the ban.

Small numbers of pubs in Wales are reporting a rise in both drinks and food sales, with soft drinks among the categories showing a significant upward trend.

There are forces of change at work. These are likely to be replicated in England in the months to come, and it is up to pubs to capitalise on them.

Paul Linthwaite, business unit director, on-premise, at Britvic Soft Drinks, suggests the experiences of pubs in Wales are offering an example to pubs across the UK.

Pubs need to take note of the opportunity, and act accordingly, he says,

adding: ³While it is understandable that not all licensed outlets can cater for the family occasion, there are still many more that could be capitalising on the significant opportunity that the family occasion offers, particularly in light of the ban.² There is no need to become overtly family-friendly to capitalise on the trend, he says ­ even simply upgrading your food offer will have a knock-on effect.

He explains: ³While some outlets will be focusing on becoming more family-friendly following the ban, others may be focusing on improving their food offering overall, which tends to have the add-on benefit of attracting more families.² And food is joining the upward trend, according to our research, with one in five (20 per cent) pubs that serve food serving more of it since the ban.

Pubs are gradually changing ­ whether these changes accelerate in the months to come remains to be seen.

What licensees said about the smoking ban​

"Our smoking shelter seats 300 or so smokers. They come to our shelter, rather than pubs with inferior shelters."

"We¹ve had positive feedback because of our smoking facilities."

"We sell more wine at lunchtime."

"As a live venue we¹ve lost our atmosphere because of the smoking ban."

"The smoking ban has had a positive effect on the environment within the pub, but negative in financial effect."

"We started serving food when the ban came in."

"Pubs lose their atmosphere with so many people outside."

"I don¹t know why my food sales are up"

"I haven¹t changed my policy but more families now visit."

"I¹ve lost 30 per cent of my sales since the smoking ban ­ but it's creeping up a bit."

"Darts and pool have been affected."

"Lots of local pubs have been receiving complaints about the noise coming from smokers outside."

"We are starting to sell food to make up for loss of wet-led sales."

"We are having problems with our neighbours about noise. Customers don¹t like leaving drinks in the bar when smoking outside."

"All our sales have increased."

"Customers can¹t take their drinks outside, and people don't like leaving them in the bar in case they are spiked with drugs."

Key facts ​

More licensees now view the ban as a positive (28 per cent) rather than a negative (26 per cent) ­ with the proportion rising to 61 per cent in Wales

51 per cent have heard mainly positive feedback from customers since

the ban, with fewer than one in four (22 per cent) hearing negative feedback

73 per cent would not like to see the smoking ban rescinded

Only three per cent have changed their policy towards families since the ban

20 per cent of pubs serving food are serving more following the ban ­ 27 per cent in the North East

25 per cent have attracted new customers since the ban came in ­ 37 per cent in the North East

In pubs reporting a rise in drinks sales since the ban, soft drinks have been among the biggest winners

78 per cent deplore the actions of the smoke ban rebels who are continuing to allow smoking in their pubs

19 per cent have seen smokers trying to light up in their pubs since the ban and of these 95 per cent are seeing it used regularly.