A pub in Richmond is one of just 10 from across the country to reach the finals of the Community Pub Hero Awards.

The competition was created to recognise the great work done by pubs since the first lockdown in March last year, who have gone above and beyond to support their local communities, despite facing uncertainty themselves.

The Angel and Crown in Church Court in central Richmond is flying the flag for our town.

Its team, led by landlord Nick Botting, jumped into action as soon as lockdown was announced, providing hot food and drinks, clothing and toiletries to anyone in need, as well as pairing with Twickenham-based homeless charity SPEAR to help find accommodation for people.

At the height of the first lockdown, they were serving up to 70 people a day and in total served 5,000 hot meals, 6,000 cups of tea and 7,000 bottles of water to local people in need.

Nationwide, 115 pubs entered the Community Pub Hero Awards, which is organised by PubAid and the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group.

Entries were judged by a panel of industry experts and the overall Community Pub Hero will be announced later this spring.

PubAid co-founder Des O'Flanagan said: "Our heartfelt congratulations go to the Angel & Crown. Landlords and landladies and their teams have offered invaluable support for communities during the pandemic, whether offering vital supplies for residents, cooking hot meals for the elderly or countering social isolation through online quizzes or chats.

"Choosing the 10 finalists was a real challenge for the judges, as every pub who entered had a strong story to tell. Those who have reached the shortlist should be very proud of their achievement."

Mike Wood, MP for Dudley South is chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group.

He said: "These awards have been a great opportunity for MPs to celebrate how landladies and landlords in their constituencies have stepped up to the mark to support their community during the pandemic. Yet again we have seen that pubs are the antidote to isolation."

This is the third year for the competition, which was reshaped and renamed this year – it was formerly Charity Pub of the Year – to focus on community support rather than traditional charity fundraising.

The finalists

• The Angel & Crown, Richmond
• The Bevy, Brighton
• The Bowgie Inn, Crantock near Newquay, Cornwall
• The Clifton Arms, Blackburn
• The Horse & Jockey, Melling, Merseyside
• The Mowden, Darlington
• The Old Courts, Wigan
• The Orange Tree, Baldock, Hertfordshire
• The Portobello Inn, West Kingsdown, Kent
• The Portsmouth Arms, Hatch Warren, Basingstoke