Urban Pubs & Bars staff crossed London in a 67-pub marathon, raising more than £32,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.
Eighty pub workers and suppliers turned London into an unlikely endurance course, visiting every Urban Pubs & Bars venue in one day and raising more than £32,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.
At 6.30 in the morning, most London pubs are sensibly doing nothing at all. On 15 September, the George and Dragon in Wanstead was instead serving as the starting line for an undertaking that sat somewhere between charity challenge, logistical experiment and a fairly persuasive argument against looking too closely at a map.
The target was simple enough to explain: visit all 67 Urban Pubs & Bars venues across London in a single day.
Actually doing it was another matter.
Eighty employees and suppliers took part in the Urban Pubs & Bars charity marathon, joining at different stages as the route wound through six regional legs. Many completed one or more sections. Four people made it all the way from Wanstead to The Whippet in Kensal Rise, finally finishing at 11.30pm.
By then, the full journey had covered 110km across the capital in around 16 hours, with more than 51km completed on foot and the rest stitched together by Tube, train and bus.
The reward was considerably more important than sore feet. The challenge raised more than £32,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity, more than twice its original fundraising target.
A London pub crawl with rather different priorities
Calling it a pub crawl would be technically accurate and spiritually misleading.
Nobody was attempting 67 leisurely stops. The object was movement, fundraising and getting around a city that rarely feels inclined to make either particularly straightforward.
Participants were welcomed by colleagues and customers as they moved between Urban venues, while suppliers including Lucky Saint and Franklin’s provided sponsorship and support along the route.
For Urban Pubs & Bars, London’s largest independent pub and dining group, the marathon formed part of a much bigger commitment: raising £250,000 for GOSH Charity.
With the latest £32,000 added to its wider fundraising, the group has now passed £200,000.
That leaves the company within £50,000 of its pledge.
Why Urban Pubs & Bars is raising £250,000
The money is being directed towards GOSH Charity’s Build it. Beat it appeal, which is supporting the creation of a new Children’s Cancer Centre at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Urban Pubs & Bars’ £250,000 commitment will help fund a new private bedroom within the centre.
That detail gives the fundraising a useful sense of scale. Large charity totals can become abstract rather quickly; a hospital bedroom cannot.
The planned rooms have been designed to give children and their families privacy and space during cancer treatment, with room for families to remain together, accessible private bathrooms and digital connectivity.
For some young patients, a hospital room can become their main living space for weeks, months or even years. The intention behind the new centre is therefore broader than providing clinical facilities alone. The environment is being designed to support play, learning and family life alongside treatment and recovery.
Four people made it through all 67 pubs
The day involved 80 participants, but only four completed the entire route.
They started at the George and Dragon at 6.30am and reached The Whippet 17 hours later, having negotiated 67 pubs and a considerable portion of London in between.
Chris Hill, Managing Director of Urban Pubs & Bars, admitted the scale of the exercise had perhaps looked friendlier on paper.
“The first ever Urban Pubs and Bars Marathon was a very special, if gruelling day. Safe to say we underestimated just how hard it would be to travel so far across London to visit all of our wonderful London pubs.”
He added that the mood remained positive despite the distance.
“The team of colleagues and suppliers remained so positive all day, and it was amazing to receive such warm welcomes at each pub.”
The £32,000 total also comfortably exceeded expectations.
“I am delighted we have raised over £30k for GOSH, doubling our initial target, meaning that we have now raised over £200k of our £250k pledge to support the building a new private bedroom at the hospital.”
The final £50,000
The marathon was not Urban Pubs & Bars’ only fundraising effort.
During September, the group has also been running a “pound on the bill” initiative for Children’s Cancer Month, with fundraising continuing across its venues, teams and communities.
Crossing the £200,000 mark means the original £250,000 commitment is now considerably closer than it was before 80 people began crossing London at an hour when most pubs had yet to put the coffee machine on.
And for all the impressive numbers attached to the challenge — 67 pubs, 110km, 51km on foot, 16 hours and more than £32,000 raised — the most important one remains rather smaller.
One bedroom.
That is what the finish line ultimately looks like.
