Pendle Brew and Grizedale Bar have announced that they will be closing with immediate effect.
Both bars had significantly reduced hours from January, when Bowland and Lonsdale bars were initially closed.
The closure comes following the first bar closures at the start of Lent term, the recent announcement of LUSU Shop closing, and the information that the university will be significantly cutting jobs to fit the new budget.
As with the closure of Bowland and Lonsdale bars, the Pendle and Grizedale JCRs were not consulted before the decisions were finalized, and found out with the rest of the students. Pendle JCR stated that “[t]aking away these facilities from our space is detrimental to the feel around the college”.
A comment from an ex-student under the Grizedale College announcement post stated that “[t]he college bars have been under attack for a very long time, but I never thought we would see this point so soon”. Many students have had the same outlook, with some entirely shocked that Pendle Brew is having to close despite its stream of customers during the day.
The removal of these bars comes with more job losses for students. With only four bars remaining on campus, and no LUSU Shop, many students continue to suffer from increased accommodation prices and fewer opportunities for income alongside their studies.
The university remains committed to ensuring that Furness and Fylde bars remain open for students, which led County College JCR to post on their Instagram to encourage students to “come in, bring your friends, and please please please spend your money!” to prevent their bar from closing.
The full Pendle College JCR post reads: “At the beginning of the week, we as the JCR were informed of the permanent closure of the bar facilities of Pendle Brew. This integral centre point of Pendle College has been our main hub for students to meet, catch up and spend quality time. Taking away these facilities from our space is detrimental to the feel around the college. Despite these closures, the JCR is still committed as always to ensuring that your voices are heard and that this space is used with the students’ best interests in mind.
They continued: “If you have any thoughts, ideas or feedback on how the space should best be used to serve students, please do take the time to fill out the form linked in our bio. This information will be used to help guide our next steps as we navigate this situation alongside the college management team.”
The new college bar opening times are as follows:
County
Wednesday to Friday – 18:00-22:00
Bowland
Closed
Furness
Monday to Friday – 16:30-23:00
Saturday 17:00-23:00
Fylde
Monday to Friday – 10:00-23:00
Saturday and Sunday – 12:00-23:00
Grizedale
Closed
Pendle
Closed
Cartmel
Monday to Sunday – 8:00-22:00
Lonsdale
Closed
