Wetherspoons closes 'worst' pub in UK in new round of closures
Wetherspoons has been cutting its pub portfolio nationwide, recently shuttering two venues in Birmingham, including one formerly branded as amongst "the worst" in Britain. The chain is now concentrating on launching fresh locations in the coming months.
The latest closures come after significant upheaval impacting branches. Just days ago, it emerged that an east Lancashire credit union will relocate to the former Fitpatricks establishment on Manchester Road, Burnley, whilst The Grey Friar in Preston went on the market last month.
The Atrium, frequently ranked as one of Birmingham's most disappointing spots, was first to shut. It had just 2.3 out of five stars on Tripadvisor. In 2022, one reviewer branded it " by far the worst Wetherspoons" they had visited.
Recent feedback for The Atrium, located within the NEC, has criticised its inflated prices, poor service standards, and lengthy food delays. Customers started raising the alarm over the venue's future last week when it disappeared from the Wetherspoons app.
Birmingham Live reports the establishment suddenly stopped trading on August 6. This was confirmed by management.
Another Wetherspoons situated in the NEC's Piazza has likewise shut down, though it's due to relaunch under different management. As part of catering company Levy's broader takeover of the indoor arena's dining outlets, this location will undergo a short-term closure.
Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon has announced that the Piazza branch will be revamped into a Levy-franchised Wetherspoon pub, with its grand reopening set for 1 September. He said the changes would not result in any job losses.
"There will not be any redundancies with staff being given the opportunity to transfer to the new owners or offered a job at a Wetherspoon pub in the region. Wetherspoon has also closed The Atrium site," he stated.
New branches on the horizon
Despite the closures, Wetherspoons is forging ahead with its plans for new branch openings by 2025. Three new branches have already thrown open their doors – the Conister Arms in the Isle of Man, the Walham Green in southwest London, and the Dictum of Kenilworth in Warwickshire.
Four more confirmed branches are due to open within the next three months. These are the Sun Wharf in London Bridge, set to open on September 16, the Sir Alexander Fleming, also in the capital, opening on September 23, the Sigered King of Essex in Basildon, welcoming customers from September 30, and the Chiltern in Beaconsfield, ready to serve guests from December 2.
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Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Wetherspoon manager sacked after giving discount on pub's halloumi fries
Wetherspoons manager Peter Castagna-Davies was fired from the Pontlottyn pub in Abertillery, South Wales, after he put the items through the till for kitchen worker Noah Gardiner A former JD Wetherspoon pub manager has triumphed in an employment tribunal after being sacked for giving a colleague a 50 per cent food discount. Peter Castagna-Davies was shown the door from his shift leader role at the Pontlottyn pub in Abertillery, Wales, despite having a spotless record for more than 22 years. Mr Castagna-Davies had rung up two portions of halloumi fries, two servings of chicken breast bites, and two cans of Monster energy drink for kitchen worker Noah Gardiner, applying the half-price discount for staff on shift. An internal probe concluded that he had violated policy by letting Mr Gardiner purchase "excessive products" at the 50 per cent rate and take the food home. The Cardiff employment tribunal was told that Mr Castagna-Davies was unaware that just two minutes before he approved the items, Mr Gardiner had used a different manager's till key to get another free meal for himself – chicken breast bites and a can of Monster Punch. Wetherspoon's disciplinary chairman Chris Jenkins decided to sack Mr Castagna-Davies, telling him: "Shortly before you processed Noah's 50 per cent on-shift discount he had processed through the till his own staff feeding meal, some two hours after his break when he had consumed it, which you had no knowledge of him doing so or even going on his break," reports Wales Online. "I find this both worrying and surprising that, as the duty manager with so few staff to manage on the shift in question, you had no knowledge or control over what was going on." Two months prior to the unfortunate discount incident – which occurred at 8.04pm on 31 January 2024 – the pub chain had internally circulated rules stating that only one item from the food menu and one soft drink were available for free to employees during their shift. Staff wishing to add extra items could purchase them at half price, and if they wanted to take food home, the discount would be limited to 20 per cent. Sarah Newton, the manager of Pontlottyn, had messaged the pub's employee group chat saying the company was "cracking down" because staff at other pubs had been taking multiple 50 per cent orders home. She cautioned that there had been instances where misuse of the discount had led to disciplinary investigations. During the tribunal, Wetherspoon's witnesses stated there had been "a crackdown on the 50 per cent discount because staff had been caught taking food home to feed their whole family". They alleged that the business had incurred "significant" costs, which prompted it to adopt a "corporate zero-tolerance attitude towards abuse of the staff discount". Wetherspoon utilises a system called IntelliQ to flag potential staff fraud. A week after the discount was approved by Mr Castagna-Davies, the system raised an alarm over the transaction. Ms Newton told him "mistakes happen" but warned him to be careful as the company was "really cracking down on it". Mr Castagna-Davies expressed disappointment in himself for the error. Keri Blanchard, an investigating manager, interviewed Mr Gardiner who claimed he had prepared the food himself. When asked if he had consumed his initial free meal on-site, he responded: "I should've yeah, I don't take food home any more." However, he then confessed that he had taken home the items processed by Mr Castagna-Davies. When questioned if he had requested a 50 per cent discount, Mr Gardiner stated: "I just asked for someone to put it through." During his interview, Mr Castagna-Davies claimed he couldn't recall the transaction but suggested he might have accidentally "pressed the wrong button", applying a 50 per cent discount instead of the usual 20 per cent. He denied knowing that Mr Gardiner intended to take the food home. Mr Jenkins dismissed him without notice. Despite acknowledging Mr Castagna-Davies' unblemished disciplinary record over 22 years, he highlighted Wetherspoon's "vigorous" enforcement of its zero-tolerance policy. He also suspected that Mr Castagna-Davies knew the food would be taken home, stating it wasn't "normal for staff at the pub to eat that much food during their breaks". During an appeal, Mr Castagna-Davies presented evidence from four witnesses to contend that Mr Gardiner "had ordered the food in a deceptive way". However, Wetherspoon area manager Dannie Stephens maintained the dismissal, informing him he had "failed to lead, manage and organise your shift sufficiently to prevent the breach". At the tribunal, Judge Rachel Harfield observed "the staff discount system is one built on trust" and that repeated abuse would prove expensive to Wetherspoon. Yet she determined it was not reasonable for Ms Stephens to conclude this constituted a case of "gross incompetence or gross negligence, as opposed to being simple negligence that falls within the misconduct category of the respondent's policy". The judge further stated: "There is no evidence that Dannie Stephens gave any thought to that at all. She seems simply to have operated on the basis that the claimant should have managed the shift better, that if he had done so the breach would not have happened, therefore the claimant should be held responsible for the breach, and it was possible under the policy to dismiss for a single act. "There was no weighing of the actual seriousness of the claimant's actions in their actual context. Dannie Stephens seemed to have viewed the claimant as diligent in other areas. It was one incident on one shift that he could have managed better. He was an employee with long service and a clear disciplinary record. The decision to uphold the dismissal at appeal stage was not within the reasonable range. In my judgement that rendered the whole dismissal unfair." A compensation amount has yet to be determined. Judge Harfield urged both parties to seek an agreement before a remedy hearing occurs. The Mirror has contacted Wetherspoon to ask whether it will be reassessing its disciplinary procedures following the judge's conclusions.
North Wales Live
4 hours ago
- North Wales Live
Wetherspoon manager sacked for allowing discount for staff member at Welsh pub
A former JD Wetherspoon pub manager has won an employment tribunal after the chain sacked him for allowing a colleague a 50% food discount. Peter Castagna-Davies - who had 22 years of unblemished service at the chain - was dismissed from his role as a shift leader at the Pontlottyn pub in Abertillery. Mr Castagna-Davies had put the items – two portions of halloumi fries, two portions of chicken breast bites, and two cans of Monster energy drink – through the till for kitchen worker Noah Gardiner and applied a half-off discount for shift staff. An internal investigation found he had breached policy by allowing Mr Gardiner to buy "excessive products" at the 50% rate and to take the food home, reports Walesonline. The Cardiff employment tribunal heard Mr Castagna-Davies had not been aware that two minutes before he approved the items, Mr Gardiner had used a different manager's till key to process another free meal for himself – chicken breast bites and a can of Monster Punch. Wetherspoon's disciplinary chairman Chris Jenkins decided to fire Mr Castagna-Davies, telling him: "Shortly before you processed Noah's 50% on-shift discount he had processed through the till his own staff feeding meal, some two hours after his break when he had consumed it, which you had no knowledge of him doing so or even going on his break. "I find this both worrying and surprising that, as the duty manager with so few staff to manage on the shift in question, you had no knowledge or control over what was going on." Two months before the ill-fated discount – which happened at 8.04pm on January 31, 2024 – the chain had internally circulated rules stating only one item from the food menu and one soft drink were available for free to employees on a shift. Employees wishing to add extra items could purchase them at half price and if they wanted to take food home the discount would only be 20%. Pontlottyn manager Sarah Newton had messaged the pub's employee group chat saying the company was "cracking down" because staff at other pubs had taken multiple 50% orders home. She warned there had been cases when use of the discount had led to disciplinary investigations. In the tribunal, Wetherspoon's witnesses said there had been "a crackdown on the 50% discount because staff had been caught taking food home to feed their whole family". They claimed the business had suffered "significant" costs, which led it to adopt a "corporate zero-tolerance attitude towards abuse of the staff discount". Wetherspoon uses a system called IntelliQ to flag potential staff fraud. A week after the discount was approved by Mr Castagna-Davies, the system flagged concern over the transaction. Ms Newton told him "mistakes happen" but that he should be careful because the company "really were cracking down on it". Mr Castagna-Davies responded that he was disappointed in himself for the mistake. An investigating manager, Keri Blanchard, interviewed Mr Gardiner, who said he had cooked the food himself. Asked if he had eaten his initial free meal on-site, he replied: "I should've yeah, I don't take food home any more." But he then admitted he had taken home the items put through by Mr Castagna-Davies. Asked if he had requested a 50% discount, Mr Gardiner said: "I just asked for someone to put it through." When Mr Castagna-Davies was interviewed he said he could not remember the transaction but that he may have mistakenly "pressed the wrong button" in applying a discount of 50% rather than 20%. He denied being aware Mr Gardiner planned to take the food home. Mr Jenkins dismissed him without notice. Although he acknowledged Mr Castagna-Davies' clean disciplinary record over 22 years, he pointed out Wetherspoon had been "vigorous" in communicating its zero-tolerance approach. He also believed Mr Castagna-Davies had known the food would be taken home as it was not "normal for staff at the pub to eat that much food during their breaks". In an appeal, Mr Castagna-Davies drew on evidence from four witnesses to argue Mr Gardiner "had ordered the food in a deceptive way". But Wetherspoon area manager Dannie Stephens upheld the dismissal, telling him he had "failed to lead, manage and organise your shift sufficiently to prevent the breach". At the tribunal, Judge Rachel Harfield noted "the staff discount system is one built on trust" and that regular abuse would be costly to Wetherspoon. But she concluded it was not reasonable for Ms Stephens to conclude this was a case of "gross incompetence or gross negligence, as opposed to being simple negligence that falls within the misconduct category of the respondent's policy". The judge added: "There is no evidence that Dannie Stephens gave any thought to that at all. She seems simply to have operated on the basis that the claimant should have managed the shift better, that if he had done so the breach would not have happened, therefore the claimant should be held responsible for the breach, and it was possible under the policy to dismiss for a single act. "There was no weighing of the actual seriousness of the claimant's actions in their actual context. Dannie Stephens seemed to have viewed the claimant as diligent in other areas. It was one incident on one shift that he could have managed better. He was an employee with long service and a clear disciplinary record. The decision to uphold the dismissal at appeal stage was not within the reasonable range. In my judgement that rendered the whole dismissal unfair." A payout is yet to be decided. Judge Harfield encouraged the parties to attempt a settlement before a remedy hearing takes place. WalesOnline has asked Wetherspoon if it will be reviewing its approach to disciplinary matters in light of the judge's findings.
Daily Record
8 hours ago
- Daily Record
Weatherpoons manager sacked for giving half-price food to worker wins employment tribunal
Peter Castagna-Davies was dismissed from his role as a shift leader after more than 20 years of unblemished service over the discount blunder. A former Weatherpoons manager sacked for giving a colleague half-price food has won an e mployment tribunal against the pub chain. Peter Castagna-Davies was dismissed from his role as a shift leader at the Pontlottyn pub in Abertillery after more than 20 years of unblemished service. Mr Castagna-Davies had put the items – two portions of halloumi fries, two portions of chicken breast bites, and two cans of Monster energy drink – through the till for kitchen worker Noah Gardiner and applied a 50% discount for shift staff. But a internal investigation found he had breached policy by allowing the worker to buy "excessive products" with a discount and take the food home. The Cardiff tribunal found the shift leader had been unfairly dismissed, reports Wales Online. Mr Castagna-Davies did not know that two minutes before he approved the items, Mr Gardiner had used a different manager's till key to process a free meal for himself – chicken breast bites and a can of Monster Punch. Wetherspoon's disciplinary chairman Chris Jenkins decided to fire Mr Castagna-Davies, telling him: "Shortly before you processed Noah's 50% on-shift discount he had processed through the till his own staff feeding meal, some two hours after his break when he had consumed it, which you had no knowledge of him doing so or even going on his break. "I find this both worrying and surprising that, as the duty manager with so few staff to manage on the shift in question, you had no knowledge or control over what was going on." Two months before the incident on January 31, 2024, the chain had internally circulated rules stating only one item from the food menu and one soft drink were available for free to employees on a shift. Employees could add extra items at half price but if they wanted to take food home the discount would only be 20%. Pontlottyn manager Sarah Newton had told staff the company was "cracking down" because other pubs had seen multiple 50% orders taken home and warned of possible disciplinary action. In the tribunal, Wetherspoon's witnesses said staff had been caught taking food home "to feed their whole family", meaning the business had suffered "significant" costs, leading to a "corporate zero-tolerance attitude towards abuse of the staff discount". Mr Castagna-Davies' transaction was flagged by a system used to identify potential staff fraud. He told management he was disappointed in himself for the mistake. When Mr Castagna-Davies was interviewed he said he may have mistakenly "pressed the wrong button" in applying a discount of 50% rather than 20% and denied being aware Mr Gardiner planned to take the food home. Mr Jenkins dismissed him without notice. In an appeal, Mr Castagna-Davies drew on evidence to argue Mr Gardiner "had ordered the food in a deceptive way". But Wetherspoon area manager Dannie Stephens upheld the dismissal, telling him he had "failed to lead, manage and organise your shift sufficiently to prevent the breach". Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Judge Rachel Harfield said the staff discount system was "built on trust" but concluded it was not reasonable for Ms Stephens to conclude this was a case of "gross incompetence or gross negligence, as opposed to being simple negligence that falls within the misconduct category of the respondent's policy". The judge added: "There is no evidence that Dannie Stephens gave any thought to that at all. She seems simply to have operated on the basis that the claimant should have managed the shift better, that if he had done so the breach would not have happened, therefore the claimant should be held responsible for the breach, and it was possible under the policy to dismiss for a single act. "There was no weighing of the actual seriousness of the claimant's actions in their actual context. Dannie Stephens seemed to have viewed the claimant as diligent in other areas. It was one incident on one shift that he could have managed better. He was an employee with long service and a clear disciplinary record. The decision to uphold the dismissal at appeal stage was not within the reasonable range. In my judgement that rendered the whole dismissal unfair." A payout is yet to be decided. Parties have been encouraged to try to reach a settlement before a remedy hearing.
