Wirral's independent local news website
New Brighton based Rockpoint Leisure’s Dan Davies has been presented with the National Pubwatch Award of Merit.
He was nominated for the top accolade by David Lucas, chair of the Nottingham City Pubwatch.
Dan is the chairman of the Institute of Licensing and director of pub chain Rockpoint Leisure.
In 1994, Dan founded CPL training and by 2007, 80% of the company’s business was personal licence holder qualifications. The company subsequently developed online courses and is a leading hospitality learning and development provider.
In February 2015, when he was still the chief executive of CPL training, Dan was appointed as the new chairman of the Institute of Licensing and continues to hold the post.
Throughout his time as chairman of the Institute, Dan has been a vocal and active supporter of partnership working and he is a strong advocate of the benefits of Pubwatch schemes.
Dan is also chair of the National Licensing Forum, and sits on the advisory committee of UKHospitality.
He was so concerned about the decline of beach town New Brighton’s Victoria Quarter that he left CPL and set up Rockpoint Leisure to lead a new regeneration project. The company, which has eight venues some open and some in renovation, purchased empty and derelict buildings to be redeveloped.
He has also spearheaded local meetings with licensed premises in the town, which will shortly be formalised into a Pubwatch scheme for the New Brighton area.
Dan has worked closely with the authorities in New Brighton to affect a transition from a declining area with boarded-up premises, vandalism, crime and an isolated community to create a new cultural hub and safe environment for the local neighbourhood. This has been reflected in the substantial number of new visitors to the area.
Dan has also given evidence to two House of Lords select committees. The first concerned a review of the Licensing Act 2003 and the second as chairman of the Institute of Licensing on the regeneration of seaside towns.
Dan Davies said, “I am honoured. I have been in this industry since I was 16 starting out as a glass collector. I was a licensee at 18 under the old system, and then I started CPL group, which ended up as the biggest training IT supplier, which I ran for 30 years.
“I am passionate about this industry.”
Image: Left to right Nigel Connor, Daniel Davies, Lord Kennedy, and Steve Baker, Chair National Pubwatch