We are one of over 200 local branches of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), and with over 1000 members locally we are one of the largest in the Region.

You can see a map of the area we cover in our Reading & Mid Berks Pubs & Clubs page.

What do we do?

• We get involved in Surveying Pubs, for inclusion in the best-selling independent guide to good beer and good pubs, the Good Beer Guide. This is published annually in September by CAMRA, and covers the whole country, allowing you to find good Real Ale wherever you are.
• We support the CAMRA LocAle initiative, which promotes pubs selling Real Ale produced locally (within 25 miles). We maintain a list of LocAle Breweries, Pubs & Shops.
• We monitor pubs for those which regularly sell Real Cider or Perry, these drinks also being actively promoted by CAMRA.
• We actively monitor the local planning applications for those that may lead to pub closure, and where appropriate add weight to those opposing such moves. Pubs are closing countrywide at an alarming rate, often resulting in a particular area losing all of its pubs, resulting in the loss of an important heart of that community.
• We publicise local pub and brewery-related news.
• We publicise and support local Beer Festivals, especially those organised by pubs in our area. These provide excellent opportunities to sample different Beers, Ciders and Perries.
• We produce our free Mine's a Pint magazine, which has lots of local articles of interest, and serves to promote CAMRA by being distributed via many pubs in the area.
• We present awards to local pubs and publicans in recognition of their excellence. Principally these are Pub of the Year and Cider Pub of the Year.
• We also have regular monthly meetings plus a varied programme of social events (see Branch Diary for details).

If you are a CAMRA member, you are welcome to get involved in any of the activities mentioned above, particularly meetings and social events.

If you are not a CAMRA member yet, please see the Join page for even more reasons why you should join! Or at the very least, come along to one of our events and see what you're missing!

Read the Reading & Mid-Berkshire CAMRA Constitution and the Reading & Mid-Berkshire CAMRA Bylaws for more information about us and our policies.

Working Groups

We have a number of working groups which specialise on organising or looking after specific areas:

• Ale Trail - organises and runs an Ale Trail on behalf of the branch
• Awards - rewards and recognises worthy pubs and individuals in the branch area, and organise our annual awards event
• LocAle - creates and maintains a list of LocAle accredited pubs and eligible breweries
• New member engagement - activates and welcomes new CAMRA members to the branch
• Magazine editorial team - creates content for 'Mine's a Pint', our branch magazine