Pub Awards: Best Community Pub – Chapins & The Cellar Bar, Boscombe

This is a pub that is run entirely for the local community and licensee Harry Seccombe is at the heart of that - having moved from being a local government reporter to running pubs, Harry is well versed in the issues of working with communities, and has even taken a central chairman role in the creation of a community plan for the area his pub is sited, Boscombe in Dorset.

It was this passion which led Harry to move into the pub game, a former local customer, he moved from setting up a Boscombe PubWatch group to running the bar. He uses his position and business as a hub for the surrounding area, with his pub hosting everything from music festivals to artists gatherings, all with the local customers and punters in mind.

Innovation is just around the corner in this venue, and Harry admits to always buzzing with new ideas. New introductions have seen a rum bar built, with spirits presented in jam jars in a old fashioned sweet-shop style hut.

Judge James Evison added: “Chaplin’s and the Cellar Bar is a great example of a community pub. The venue’s passion for local arts and wide-ranging support for the town of Boscombe has made a significant impact on resident’s quality of life and the local economy. The judges were particularly impressed with the licensee’s involvement with local groups and the council, which went far beyond the traditional role of a publican, and illustrated his elevation to a genuine community champion.”