Drugs Awareness Pub Training - Online Mock Exam

Inn-Dispensable are pleased to announce the launch of our FREE online Drugs Awareness mock exam. This is a great interactive tool to test your knowledge prior to attending our one-day Drugs Awareness Course and exam at one of our many fantastic training sites across the UK.

This online test contains 15 multiple-choice questions which are randomly selected and are typical of the exam subject matter and mirrors closely the type of questions which appear within the real Drugs Awareness exam – so you can test yourself again and again to help build your knowledge.

Available on all devices, from desktops to mobiles.

Best of luck!


Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Pub Training Courses

Training Is Vital For Running A Successful Pub

I guess that most of you know that taking on a pub is the dream of many people, and you’ll certainly know that all of the doom and gloom merchants say “Don’t do it, Stupid”.

What I know is that for some it will work out brilliantly, for some it will be a disappointment - and yes for some it will be a disaster. But surely that mix should not take away the dream?

The one thing I do know without reservation is that ‘going in blind’ is a recipe for the disaster zone.

There are so called ‘industry experts’ who condemn Pub Companies for leading new entrants along a path of taking on ‘no-hope pubs’, and yet I know (there’s a lot I know, I know) that pub companies take enormous care, face high costs and show great commitment to ensuring all new entrants to their pubs have as much information as possible to prepare them for each pub. This preparation is no guarantee of success of course, just as preparing any athlete to run the 100 metres at the Olympics would not guaranteed them a Gold Medal. It would however point out the reality of the contest and the challenge ahead - the rest is frankly ‘down to them’.

Well, I want to put the record straight … new entrants into the tenanted and lease sectors get fantastic support, advice and training prior to taking their pubs - and I want to share with you some recent feed back from delegates on our latest 5 day course run for one of the largest pub co’s in the UK.

Here goes (all verbatim):-

• “The entire course has been relevant and extremely practical, very impressed”
• “I found the course very helpful as I am just starting out”
• “Very good course, the tutors were wonderful”
• “The course has been relevant and extremely informative and has cleared many questions and issues I could see prior to taking my pub. It has shown me issues in the pub that have to be addressed as soon as possible. All sections of the course have been explained in clear concise terms by the tutors. I strongly recommend using the training available so that I can pass all onto my staff”
• “This was a brilliant course, a brilliant week”
• “Good to come on the course before getting into my pub so that I can take what I have learnt into my new business”

Follow your dream say I, create your own future say I. Be aware however that there are no guarantees for success, BUT failing to prepare is preparing to fail!!

Here endeth the lesson.


Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of www.inn-dispensable.com Personal Licence Courses

Under-age Alcohol Sales Laws Courses

We've been running a few courses recently regarding "Prevention of under-age alcohol sales", with a wide range of delegates from pubs, supermarkets, garages and a number of Licensing Officers attending our training.

As a result, no confusion any more:

1. No, you can't sell alcohol to a 16 year old when they eat a meal.
2. No, you can't allow an unaccompanied under 16 year old in without an 18 plus year old to accompany them.
3. Yes, a 16 year old can drink beer, cider or wine with a meal, providing it is purchased by someone over 18, and they accompany them whilst they eat the meal.
4. Yes, a 16 year old can enter a licensed premises, unaccompanied.
5. No, you can't purchase alcohol for anyone under 18.
6. No, you can't send anyone under 18 to purchase alcohol.
7. Yes, you can deliver alcohol to an under 18 year old, if it has been purchased by someone over 18.
8. Oh, and yes, you can be fined up to £5000.
9. Yes, you can be fined up to £20000 for persistent sales to under 18s.

...and yes there are about 30 other laws and regulations about under age sales.

Want to learn more? Phone 02392 345 679. More courses planned!

Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

Where There's a Will, There's a New Way to Sell Alcohol

Following on from the news that JD Wetherspoon have successfully gained a licence to open a licensed outlet on a motorway, I now bring news of a motor vehicle that is a licensed outlet itself! – So you travel to one and the other travels to you!

Will Spiers, a bright your entrepreneur. recently passed the APLH on one of our courses and has launched his new business. You will see from the picture that his business is that of a converted Volkswagen Camper Van, imported from the USA which will perform as a travelling high-end bar. Champagne, fine wines, etc. 'The Camper Vin' (very clever) will be seen at race meetings, parties, music festivals, et al.

We wish Will all the best for his new venture, and who knows, one day he may have 12 of them on the road! Thanks for choosing Inn-Dispensable, Will.


Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

Providing Personal Licence Training for a Wide Range of Personalities

One of the great joys of running a training business in the licensed sector is the sheer diversity of our customer profile and venue location.

One minute we might be running a session at The Inner Temple of the Law Courts, the next minute in a skittle alley in the depths of who knows where. Then on to Les Ambassadors Club in the heart of Mayfair, London and the store room of an off-licence. We work with police officers, licensing officers, students, pub owners, club owners, a mobile "cut in half" Volkswagen owner, tea rooms, village halls, rugby, football, cricket, you name it clubs. And now and again a famous person.

Here's the latest:
Adam Henson, TV presenter and owner of The Cotswold Farm Park, recently commissioned Inn-Dispensable to obtain a Premises Licence and to train all of his staff when he recently began selling alcohol at the Farm Park.

And here is what Adam kindly said...
Adam commented "The professionalism and expertise of the Inn-Dispensable team was invaluable throughout the whole process".


Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Courses

Campaigns Against Ever-Rising Pub Closures

Against a background report from CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale), that in the six months to March this year, an increased rate of pub closures went up from eighteen per week to twenty six per week, the industry and other parties are stepping up their tremendous efforts to protect and promote our pub industry.

Here are a few things that are happening;
A new consumer campaign, complimentary to the campaign I blogged on last week (Pubs are Great) has been launched to celebrate Britain’s passion for pubs. “Its Better Down the Pub” encourages pub goers to celebrate why they love pubs so much.  Take a look on YouTube at the video. There are some heavyweight players behind the campaign including Admiral Taverns, The BII, Everards, Fullers, The Pub is the Hub and SIBA (Society Independent Brewers) and many other supporters.

Then there is Jacques Borel continuing with his campaign to have VAT reduced for the Hospitality Sector, some £1.4 million has so far been spent on the campaign and Mr Borel boasts that in 6o countries across the world where he has run similar campaigns, he has been successful in 58 of them! In addition to his belief that a reduction will drive job opportunities he further argues that with an election not too far away, politicians will be eager to demonstrate any way in which they can reduce un-employment. Some senior politicians seem to rubbish his rationale…we will see.

Then we have the Skills Sector for Hospitably forecasting that 50% of all employers will take on an apprentice, this will do wonders to raise the skill level and customer care levels within pubs.

Politically, another campaign to save pubs from closure is running via CAMRA. “List you Local” encourages residents to list their local pub as an “Asset of Community Value”, once listed it gives more time and opportunity to explore other options rather than closure.

And how about UKIPs campaign “Save the Pub” no matter what your politics are, saving the pub seems a pretty neutral political thrust but only UKIP claim to be the Political Party for The Pub (their words not mine!).

Here's another for you “Fair Deal for Your Local” - even more political this one, I chose to stay out of this debate! Not sure where HMG is with Minimum Pricing but I guess it is still on an agenda somewhere!

As for Inn-Dispensable, we continue with our efforts to raise Knowledge Skill and Attitudes of staff within pubs throughout our extensive range of courses!

All of this combined surely must have an impact on encouraging customers back into the pub?


Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

Key Points to Running a Successful Pub - From a Winner

How refreshing to read of Mahdis Neghabian experience of being a judge in this years BII’s Licensee of the Year, having herself triumphed last year.

Here are some of the reflections she makes; The competition forces you to:
Turn the mirror onto your own business and ultimately improve it
Be original
Be innovative
Examine all aspects of the following:-
    •    Socially responsible alcohol retailing
    •    Customer service
    •    Marketing
    •    Using new media effectively
Take a step back to view your business as the customer views it

I knew we have been doing something right at Inn-Dispensable because we've been featuring all of these messages (and more) within our courses for the last 20 years. The challenge is to get more licensees like Mahdis to actually DO IT!

Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

Life Doesn't Have to Be Taxing – Says Octoganarian Businessman

85 years old, French, decorated with the Legion D’Honneur, war hero, rich, innovator, self-made and claims to have created 650,000 new jobs as a result of his campaigning! And that’s just a bit of his life story!!

Jacques Borel the name, inspirational the man!

His campaign, simple; reduce VAT on Food and Drink, up go sales and profit, up go jobs! Easy to summarise? Difficult to achieve? absolutely, but he has achieved it across many countries and now he is focusing on Britain!

If you want to be inspired, if you want to see real strategy designed to address cause not effect, do no more than read Roger Protz brilliant interview with “The Man” in the Publican/Morning Advertiser. Fantastic!!

Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

A Plea For Minimum Alcohol Pricing Leadership

In a Blog some months ago I had a torturous argument with myself as to whether I supported Minimum Pricing or not, eventually on the grounds that it would contribute somewhat to helping The British Pub, I came down in favour of a Yes!

Now today 12 very influential CEOs within our industry have written in the Telegraph with a similar plea to “Call me Dave” to “stick to his guns” and bring in the measure.

The argument goes something like this:
Minimum pricing will not solve all of our alcohol-related ills, but it will help to encourage responsible drinking and curb excessive drinking. All too often customers arrive at licensed premises already blitzed, often to be refused entrance. They then go onto cause mayhem in town centres which in turn reflects badly on pubs and clubs, but its nothing to do with them because the alcohol has been consumed at home beforehand!! Pretty unfair, Eh?

In their letter, they urge Dave (my term) “not to waste the opportunity” and ask that he continues to show courage and leadership in theses difficult times. Bit of a different degree of courage that Maggie (God rest her soul) had to show when the Falklands were invaded. But never the less Dave needs to follow up his pledge of some time ago that minimum Pricing is a pillar of conservative policy.

The Treasury are opposing the introduction, and several ministers have argued that it will penalise the majority of drinkers - so time to be counted Dave. The British pub needs all of the support it can get. 1 million jobs, £8 billion raised in taxes!

Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Training

Fantastic Alcohol Course at Historic Brewery

I ran a course recently for delegates to take an ARAR qualification (Award for Responsible Alcohol Retailing) sponsored by the great generosity of SAB Miller and hosted by the great generosity of Hook Norton Brewery.

We were very kindly allowed the privilege of running the session in the oak-panelled, age-old, Board Room of Hooky, a board room which must have had on the agenda; creating a “tied trade” way back in 1859. The directors no doubt discussed the benefits such a system would bring to tenants who did not have the wherewithal to buy their own pubs! So whilst the tied system has its issues today, lets not knock totally a system that in this instance has been successful for over 150 years!

This is a fabulous traditional brewery in the heart of a country village, which was founded in 1849. SAB Miller was of course founded in Johannesburg in 1895, so a youngster compared to Hook Norton.

But my how these two brilliant companies have progressed, and how they both see the value of promoting and supporting “Responsible Alcohol Retailing”. The two businesses combine tradition with modernity and demonstrate the way an age-old industry needs to adapt to current matters.

I would mention that during a coffee break I peeked into the hand-written ledgers in the boardroom and could have stayed there all day fascinated by such history (and prices for a barrel of Hooky!)

A great day for the delegates (all of whom passed) - and a great day for me.

Thank you SAB Miller and Hook Norton, and thank you to the BIIAB for a great qualification.

Martin Read CMBII
Managing Director of Inn-Dispensable Personal Licence Courses

The Next On-going Pub Battle!

New powers have been given to councils across the UK, under the National Planning Policy Framework, to give greater protection to community pubs; the trick is to get more councils to make use of them!

Some 18 pubs continue to close each week and we need councils to follow the lead of Cambridge, Bristol and a few others in creating Pro-Pubs policies.

All too often loopholes in the planning system allow a pub to be knocked down and turned into a supermarket, betting shop or payday loan shop. Once a pub has gone it really has gone and will not be replaced!

CAMRA that mighty and good organisation is supporting the Save the Pub groups campaign to encourage councils to use policies to support and protect pubs with strong local policies. We at Inn-Dispensable are also doing all we can to add our weight to this worthy cause.

These efforts must be backed up by the Government to close loopholes that allow pubs to be demolished or converted to other uses without local community consultation.

All who contributed to the Beer Duty Escalator issue and won, can now show another united front to protect one of the worlds Greatest Institutions: THE BRITISH PUB.

Personal Licence Training from Inn-dispensable

Another Possible Attack On The UK Pub Trade

The UK Government are apparently planning to add "public health" onto the list of licensing objectives where authorities are wanting to introduce CIPs (cumulative impact policies).

This policy will restrict the existence and growth of licenced premises in certain areas. A licensing authority can introduce a CIP on the grounds that a new pub will add to crime and disorder.

Gerald Gouriet a highly respected QC, speaking recently a major trade event explained that; "It will be hard for a licencee to say that their premises will not harm health in the area, it is already difficult enough to demonstrate that a pub does not add to crime, disorder and nuisance. The industry is going to be fighting a real battle where all of the weapons are on the other side. We are going to be defenceless!".

Oh dear, what a grim prognosis.

Thought for the day: "Cannon to the right of them, Cannon to the left" Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Personal Licence Training from Inn-dispensable