The Highfield proves it’s the best bar none

The Highfield, on Highfield Road, South Shore, was presented with the trophy after The Gazette launched a competition to find the town’s favourite watering hole.

After announcing a short-list of 10 contenders in December, it went to a public poll.

And the Highfield emerged the winner after attracting the most votes from our readers.

Landlord Sean Lithgow, who has run the pub with his wife Della for eight years, said the trophy now held pride of place behind the bar. And he puts his establishment’s community feel down as the reason for their success.

He said: “We were really pleased to win, and I put it down to the team we have working here and the guests who have supported us over the past eight years.

“I would say 96 per cent of our customers are regulars, and they are great.

“Everyone is happy and gets on with everyone else.

“We never have any trouble or the police here and the guests play a massive role in making sure everyone behaves. We are a proper community pub. It is a strong community round here and we are proud to be a part of that.

“The pub has a good reputation for food, we hold quiz nights, and we raise a lot of money for charity. That’s what being a local pub is about.

“Also we have regular live music and we like to give young local bands a chance.”

The Best Bar competition was launched for the first time last year with readers invited to vote for their favourite hostelries from thoughout the town.

The runner-up in the competition was the Newton Arms, on Staining Road, Normoss. And landlady of 10 years Janette Marsh says their high ranking was down to the loyalty of her customers – adding that the competition created a “real buzz” around the pub.

She added: “We were really made up. I just think that our locals are really loyal here. They are supportive.

“We have local taxi drivers who drink in here and they were collecting the coupons and saying to people, ‘Will you vote for the local pub?’ They were getting the word out there.

“It created a real buzz around the pub and it gets people behind you.”

She added that customers were behind a scheme to host a festive dinner for people who were home alone over Christmas.