Beerhouses as a limited company was established in 2014 but our history goes back much further than that.
Early Years
It all started at Dewsbury Railway Station in 1994 when our founder, Mike Field, had a mad idea to transform disused waiting rooms into a pub. This was inspired by Stalybridge Buffet Bar, a railway pub that Mike had frequented as a student. With no prior experience in the pub trade, nobody expected much and yet the West Riding remains a favourite on the Original Ale Trail and here we are all these years later with a family of 5 pubs and an events venue! Serendipitously, Stalybridge Buffet Bar numbers among them and you can read more about that here.
Next generation
Over the years, we acquired new pubs that we felt ‘fit’ with what a Beerhouses pub was: traditional pubs serving their communities but each with something unique – we’ll never be a chain that rolls out homogenous pubs wherever they are.
The company is now led by Mike’s stepdaughter, Sarah Barnes, who started glass collecting in The West Riding when she was 15 years old and, having done every job since, has truly proved her dedication to this company and sets the direction of what Beerhouses is all about.
Meet the Beerhouses Team
Beerhouses is a truly people-led organisation as the pub and the drinks are just part of the story. Let us introduce you to the office team and pub managers:
Sarah Barnes
Managing Director
The original Beerhouser! Sarah has lived and breathed Beerhouses since way before it was called Beerhouses and was just The West Riding. From glass collecting at age 15, to working closely with step father, Mike Field – who dreamt the whole thing up back in 1994 – to build the group to what it is today, she has been the managing director since 2014. Sarah loves travelling, live music, and has a passion for interior design, which is evident in all our pubs. Her favourite tipple? Sarah is as partial to tea as she is IPA and is something of a tequila aficionado.
Barry Shaw
Operations Manager
Barry (aka Bazza) started working with us in 2012, stocktaking at all the pubs. When we officially formed the Beerhouses company in 2014, we just knew we needed him on board full time! It’s his job to make sure everything runs smoothly across all pubs and spends much of his time hobnobbing around them all, supporting the managers and keeping everything in order. From becoming one of the youngest pub landlords in Yorkshire at age 21, there’s not much Bazza doesn’t know about pubs. He loves a beer, which he enjoys drinking in exotic locations – usually Filey.
Clare Cleverly
Office & Accounts Manager
Clare, aka Kipper, has worked with the company off and on since 2001 so she’s really part of the furniture. She left for her ‘gap years’ in 2009 to run her own pub and then returned in 2014 as part of the ‘dream team’ of the newly established company. She keeps the office running like a dream and is responsible for everyone getting paid so it’s always worth keeping her sweet! Known for her giddy personality (hence the nickname), Kipper is a dedicated Huddersfield Town fan and enjoys a glass or two of wine.
Jo Gittins
HR Manager
Jo is an HR geek with a form, template, and policy for everything! The calm voice of reason, she always steers us in the right direction and ensures we do everything by the book. A non-drinker, she doesn’t even partake in tea and coffee so we’re not quite sure where her vim for life comes from but is an example to us all!
Sarah Miles
Marketing Manager
Sarah, aka Smiles, is in charge of telling as many people as possible how fabulous Beerhouses is, which isn’t really that hard. As a fan of blonde ales, exotically flavoured stouts, and pubs in general, Smiles couldn’t quite believe her luck when she bagged this gig.
Danny Munt
Manager, West Riding
Danny runs our flagship pub, The West Riding, and has worked for Beerhouses for a loooonnnnnggg time. Skilled at everything from the day to day running of the pub to laying on large scale beer festivals and music events, Danny’s favourite drink is actually a fancy, frothy coffee.
John Fletcher
Manager, The Sportsman
John is dedicated to his art and curates his bar offerings carefully, which is no doubt why The Sportsman has won Huddersfield CAMRA’s Cider Pub of the Year for several years running. If you want to refer to him by his proper title, he is an Honourable Knight of The Brotherhood of the Pink Elephant, as designated by Huyghe Brewery due to his exceptional conditioning of Delirium beers on the bar. He also created the Huddersfield International Crisp Festival, aka HIC-Fest.
Amber Duffee
Manager, The County
After learning her trade at The Sportsman, under John’s guidance, Amber stepped up to her own pub when Beerhouses acquired The County in 2022. Amber has worked hard to establish The County as a fun, vibrant pub that still adheres to tradition and has some amazing products on the bar. She has even taken a keen interest in brewing herself. Winning Huddersfield CAMRA’s Pub of the Year in 2024 is real testament to Amber’s dedication.
Jo Waude
Manager, The Cricketers
Jo has worked for Beerhouses for many years, starting at The West Riding and taking over the Cricketers in 2017 as manager, helping it to achieve multiple CAMRA awards over the years. As the manager of the only village based pub in the group, Jo loves getting out into the countryside for walking and cycling, which she finishes off with a well-deserved pint of cask mild.
Lyndsey Walker & Phill Shaw
Co-managers, Stalybridge Buffet Bar
Like a well-oiled machine, Lyndsey and Phill run Stalybridge Buffet Bar together, with Phill expertly selecting the beers and Lyndsey keeping the bar running like clockwork. As the beer expert, it wouldn’t surprise you to learn that Phill’s tipple of choice is a strong Belgian ale (in moderation, of course), while Lyndsey is more partial to a vodka at the bar.
As well as our team, as a small business we rely on working with partners and professionals to help us do what we do. There are too many to mention everyone, but we’d like to particularly thank the following people for supporting us in their own specialist areas:
- Adam Gill from Grammar Studio for our recent rebrand and design work
- Jo Clarke from ego for our website
- Elspeth Mary Moore for photography and videography
- Howard Hughes from Esigns
