Greene King has announced a new ‘safe socialising’ layout to its 1,700 pubs as preparations ratchet up to serve customers from July 4.
The UK pub giant said it has invested £15million into pub safety, including protective measures for staff and customers such as Perspex screens and visors.
Tables will be spaced out in line with any government guidelines and customers will be encouraged to pre-book a table rather than stand at the bar, it said.
Chief executive Nick Mackenzie said: ‘We can’t wait to welcome our customers back to our pubs and we know people are eager to return to their local.’
However, he also stressed that a number of Greene King pubs ‘will not be financially viable or able to open’ with current restrictions in place, as he called for the Government to consider reducing distancing guidance from two metres to one.
The announcement comes amid frantic demands from MPs and business leaders for the Government to drop its two-metre social-distancing rule.
UK pub giant Greene King has announced a new ‘safe socialising’ layout to its 1,700 pubs as preparations ratchet up to serve customers from July 4
CEO Nick Mackenzie said some Greene King pubs ‘will not be financially viable or able to open’ with current restrictions in place (pictured, King Stag and Hounds pub in Farnham Common
The UK pub giant said it has invested £15million into pub safety, including protective measures for staff and customers such as Perspex screens and visors
Under plans drawn up by Greene King, pub staff across their 1,700 premises will be required to uphold hygiene standards by wearing visors.
A new ‘safe socialising’ layout is being introduced in the pubs, with clear signage to direct customers through the pub.
Tables will be spaced out further in-line with any government guidelines and customers will be encouraged to pre-book a table rather than stand at the bar.
The bar service area will have perspex screens and screening will be positioned between booths where necessary. There will be new one-in-one-out red and green indicators at the entrances to the toilets so customers can flip the indicator with their elbow as they enter and exit, with toilets cleaned every 15 minutes.
To minimise contact between team members and customers, Greene King will roll out an Order and Pay app to all its managed pubs.
Tables will be spaced out in line with any government guidelines and customers will be encouraged to pre-book a table rather than stand at the bar, Greene King said
Customers will be encouraged to download it and place food and drink orders from the comfort of their table, paying contactless via the app.
The pubs will provide one-time-use menus that customers can take away or be disposed of in a sustainable way at the pub.
Cutlery will be wrapped and condiments will be kept in sachets or in fresh ramekins.
A pub host will be on hand at the entrance of the pub to welcome each customer, show them to their table and manage queues.
Customers will be asked to use the hand sanitiser stations at the entrance on arrival and utilise the many stations placed in key positions during their visit.
Fears are growing that up to three-quarters of all pubs, restaurants and hotels will be forced to close if the Government does not relax the requirement
Every pub will have its own dedicated Pub Safe Monitor, a team member, easily identifiable by their uniform, with the responsibility of ensuring that additional cleaning of tables and public space is done swiftly and efficiently.
Fears are growing that up to three-quarters of all pubs, restaurants and hotels will be forced to close if the Government does not relax the requirement.
In the event that the distance is not reduced, thousands of pubs will face misery and financial ruin, according to the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA).
With the British economy contracting 20 per cent in April, there are now urgent pleas from MPs and business leaders to restart the engines of UK plc.
Other companies are gearing up to open their boozers, with Clive Watson, founder of City Pub Group, revealing they are preparing to ‘cautiously’ and ‘safely’ welcome customers to 48 pubs in London and the South East.
He said: ‘We will reopen with a reset, more efficient, streamlined business, reduced capital expenditure and our focus on the existing estate. We have a strong balance sheet not only to endure and prosper again, but also to take advantage of opportunities that arise.’
Mr Watson said that 2020 ‘began well’ for the company before growth plans were curtailed in March by the pandemic.
City Pub Group furloughed 98 per cent of staff after shutting its pub sites and entered into talks with landlords over rent holidays and deferrals.
The company said the crisis was a ‘one-off opportunity to reset the way the business is run’ as it looks to improve efficiency across operations.
It came as the group revealed that revenues jumped by 31 per cent to £60million in 2019 as it rapidly grew its accommodation business.
Meanwhile, Mitchells & Butlers has secured an extra £100million in funding from its banks, HSBC and Santander UK, to bolster its finances ahead of reopening.
It said it is losing around £15million in earnings before tax and interest for each four-week period while its pubs remain shut.
Tim Jones, chief finance officer at Mitchells & Butlers, said: ‘We are grateful for the strong working relationships we have with our banking group, enabling us to put together this support funding in uncertain times.
‘As we come through the challenges posed by the abrupt shutdown of the hospitality sector, we now look forward to welcoming back guests into our sites, where safety will clearly be of paramount importance.’
MPs warned this week that three out of four pubs, restaurants and hotels could go bust unless the Government’s two-metre rule is scrapped.
In a bleak assessment, a cross-party group of MPs said the majority of businesses in the catering and tourism sector would find it ‘impossible to operate financially’ if staff and customers were required to remain two metres apart.
The group urged ministers to work urgently to get the distance reduced, warning that many venues would be unable to reopen even if lockdown is eased.
GDP fell by more than a fifth in the first month of lockdown, and has now contracted by 25 per cent since February. In this chart, 100 on the vertical axis represents the size of the economy in April 2016, showing the extent of the fall compared to previous changes since 1997
Construction has been the worst hit sector of the economy, according to the ONS figures
Measured quarter on quarter, growth between February and April was down 10.4 per cent. During the Credit Crunch the maximum single-quarter fall was 2.1 per cent
The OECD warned that the UK is likely to be the worst hit major economy from coronavirus
The devastating report came as Boris Johnson faced an overwhelming clamour from scientists, politicians and business leaders to lift or relax the social-distancing rule.
In April, the economy shrank by an astonishing 20.4 per cent in April – the biggest fall ever. GDP plummeted by more than a fifth in the first full month of the crippling lockdown being in place, following a 5.8 per cent slump in March.
UK plc has now contracted by 25 per cent since February, with the country facing the worst recession in 300 years, when the Great Frost laid waste to Europe.
The eye-watering reduction, even worse than predicted by analysts, shows the scale of the damage being inflicted on the economy by lockdown.
Researchers found there was roughly a 1.3 per cent chance of contracting the virus when two metres from an infected patient. But halving this gap raised the risk to only 2.6 per cent. This means the disease would spread to fewer than three in 100 people, against 13 in 100 without any social distancing at all. That equates to an 80 per cent reduction in risk
Chancellor Rishi Sunak and swathes of Tory MPs are demanding the PM relaxes the two-metre rule strangling the hospitality and retail sectors.
Scottish Secretary Alister Jack broke cover today to signal he supports the move, saying action was needed to ‘save people’s livelihoods’.
Mr Johnson insisted this afternoon that infections were still too high for an immediate change, but added that ‘as we make further progress I hope to say more’.
He said the economy was bound to be hit hard because of its reliance on services, but added that the UK is ‘resilient’ and ‘dynamic’.
The CBI says halving the distance to one metre – regarded as a ‘minimum’ by experts – could double the level of activity possible for firms.