The Pentre Comrades Club in Pentre, Rhondda, is continuing its mission to bring people together in its community.
The venue is focused on supporting local groups and hosting events that help tackle social isolation and loneliness, providing a vital space for connection in an area where such facilities are increasingly limited.
Thanks to new audio-visual equipment, the pub can now host an even wider range of activities. It already accommodates craft sessions, warm hubs for pensioners, baby showers, weddings, parties, charity events and quizzes. The new equipment means the pub has been able to introduce a monthly guest speaker event as well as hosting afternoon teas.
Over the past 20 years, many amenities in the former coal-mining village have closed, including schools, shops, day centres and libraries, leaving a growing need for accessible community spaces.
Publicans Denise Roberts and Helen Roderick, who have run the Pentre Comrades Club for 30 years, have worked to address this gap by creating a welcoming hub that helps to bring back those community connections.
The venue opens as a pub on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays but is open seven days a week offering a community space with a village store and café, which is run by a team of local volunteers. Both the community shop and café were opened with support from Pub is The Hub.
With expert guidance and access to a grant from Pub is The Hub, supported by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), the new AV system will enable the pub to host more community and social events, attracting new visitors while strengthening its role at the heart of the village
The project has been supported by the DBT as part of its Hospitality Support Fund, which aims to strengthen communities by helping pubs diversify and remain sustainable community assets.
Publican Denise Roberts said: “The Pentre is a place for everyone. We already offer a wide range of activities to support local residents, and this new AV system will allow us to expand what we do and reach even more people.”
Pub is The Hub regional advisor Roger Belle added: “The Pentre Comrades Club is a fantastic example of publicans responding to the needs of their community. It is a true hub for the area, and this new AV system will help it support even more people in the future.”
Kate Dearden, Minister Employment Rights and Consumer Protection, said:“Rural pubs like Pentre Comrades Club are vital to their communities. Whether it’s by creating jobs or providing locals, like those in Pentre, with a place to come together, socialise and tackle social isolation.
“This is exactly why we are working to secure the future of rural pubs with our Hospitality Support Fund. As of 1 April, every pub is now also getting 15% off its new business rates bill on top of the £4.3bn support package announced at Budget.”
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