solihull.camra.org.uk

The Solihull and District CAMRA branch page names three local venues that have appeared in the Good Beer Guide every year for the last 10 years: The Fieldhouse, the Pup and Duckling, and the Knowle and Dorridge Cricket Club. The same page announces that the 2027 edition of the guide is now available and congratulates all the pubs and clubs that were successfully selected, but it does not publish the full local list on that page.

What the branch page actually confirms

So if you want the complete set of Solihull-area entries for a given year, the branch homepage is a starting point rather than the final answer.

How to get the full local list

1. Check the branch news pages. The homepage points readers to the side menu or top drop-down menu for "latest branch and pub news." Selection announcements usually sit in the news section rather than the welcome text.
2. Use the national pub guide. The site's menu includes a link to the national CAMRA pub guide, which is where individual guide entries are searchable by area.
3. Buy or borrow the guide itself. The 2027 edition is sold through the CAMRA shop linked from the page. A printed copy gives you the definitive entries, including descriptions written by local branch volunteers.

Why the 10-year list matters more than a single year

A one-off entry can reflect a good year; a decade-long run signals consistency. The three venues named — two pubs and a cricket club — have been judged worth including every year for 10 years, which tells you the branch has found their beer quality and consistency reliable over time. That makes them a sensible shortlist if you are planning a visit and want somewhere with a track record rather than a single good review.

Two practical caveats:

• Clubs are included too. The Knowle and Dorridge Cricket Club is a club, not a pub, so opening hours and access may differ from a typical pub. Check before travelling.
• Guide entry is not a permanent status. Selection is reviewed annually, so a venue's presence in the 2027 guide says nothing definitive about later editions.

If you want to verify a specific pub

Search the pub's name alongside "Good Beer Guide" and the year, or look for the current guide entry in the national CAMRA pub guide linked from the branch site. For the Solihull branch specifically, the news pages are the place where newly selected venues are most likely to be named.

The Solihull and District CAMRA site is the local branch hub for pub and real ale information in the Solihull area. You can use it to check upcoming branch socials and meetings, read local pub news, browse a pub guide, download the branch magazine and its archive back to 1982, and find member discounts. Most content is open to anyone; a members' area and local discounts are aimed at CAMRA members.

Events and branch diary

The homepage lists upcoming branch activity, and the side menu links to the full branch diary, branch socials, and local beer festivals and events. Examples from the site:

Local beer festivals listed include the St Alphege Beer Festival (Friday 30 – Saturday 31 October 2026) and the Kidderminster Beer & Cider Festival (Thursday 12 – Saturday 14 November 2026). The site also keeps pages on previous branch socials and previous branch beer festivals.

Pub guide, awards and local pub news

• Pub guide and pub history pages cover local pubs, with a separate pub history section.
• Pub awards and recommendations lists branch picks, including the pubs and clubs selected for the 2027 Good Beer Guide. The branch notes that The Fieldhouse, the Pup and Duckling, and the Knowle and Dorridge Cricket Club have been selected every year for the last 10 years.
• Local pub news carries openings, closures and promotions. Recent items: The Orange Tree closed for refurbishment and reopens 20 November; The BOOT at Lapworth reopened 17 October after refurbishment; The Mallard in Tidbury Green opened 15 October; and Fieldhouse and other Ember Inns extended a cask ale promotion to the end of December — all cask ales reduced to £3.50 per pint on production of a voucher in the Ember Inns App.

Magazine and archive

The Solihull Drinker magazine is available to download; the site currently offers the September edition. The Solihull CAMRA Archive holds the magazine and its predecessor back to 1982, and the branch says it now includes almost all editions. This is the strongest resource on the site for anyone researching local pub history or the branch's past campaigns.

Member benefits and getting involved

• Local discounts for CAMRA members has its own menu entry.
• A members' area and sign in are available on the site.
• Join us and Contacts pages explain how to become a member; the membership secretary can be reached at the address shown on the homepage (written in reverse to deter spam).
• Links out to National CAMRA, the national pub guide, beer festivals, What's Brewing and the CAMRA shop are in the menu.

Other reference pages

The Real Ale Jargon Buster explains brewing and beer terms, and a Local CAMRA Branches page points to neighbouring branches. The 2027 Good Beer Guide is promoted via the CAMRA shop link.

Practical notes

The site is a branch information page rather than a booking or ticketing service: event details are listings, and you should confirm times and venues against the branch diary before travelling, since listings can change. Discounts described on the site are tied to specific schemes and vouchers (for example, the Ember Inns app voucher), so check the terms on the relevant page before relying on them.

Open the Solihull and District CAMRA website at solihull.camra.org.uk and use the Branch Diary and Branch Socials pages in the side menu (or the drop-down menu at the top) to see upcoming dates. The homepage also lists the next few months of events directly below the welcome text, so you can often confirm a date without leaving the front page. Branch meetings appear with both venue and start time, for example the Forest Hotel in Dorridge and the Fieldhouse in Solihull.

Where the information sits on the site

The site's navigation groups the relevant pages together:

The homepage summarises the nearest items under "Coming up Branch Socials" and "Coming up Branch Meetings", so it works as a quick check before you commit to travelling.

Checking a specific event

1. Go to the homepage and scan the "Coming up" lists for the month you are interested in.
2. If the event you want is not shown, open Branch Diary from the menu for the fuller programme.
3. Note the venue and start time — meetings are typically listed as, for example, "Monday 2 November 2026 20:00, Forest Hotel, Dorridge".
4. For socials, check Branch Socials for the meeting arrangement, since a crawl or outing may not start at a fixed pub.

As listed on the site at the time of writing, upcoming items include:

• Branch Socials: Christmas Crawl, Saturday 12 December 2026
• Branch Meetings: Monday 2 November 2026, 20:00, Forest Hotel, Dorridge; Saturday 7 November 2026, 12:00, Young Members Autumn Forum; Wednesday 2 December 2026, 20:00, Fieldhouse, Solihull

Dates and venues change, so treat these as a snapshot and confirm on the Branch Diary page before setting out.

If you cannot find what you need

The site also carries a Contacts page and a membership contact for the membership secretary, which is the route to take if a meeting detail looks out of date or you want to ask about attending as a non-member. The Solihull Drinker magazine archive, including editions back to 1982, is useful for seeing how regular socials and meetings have historically been organised, but it is not a substitute for the current diary.

For the wider pub side of the branch, the Pub Guide and Pub Awards and Recommendations pages sit alongside the diary, and the site notes that the 2027 Good Beer Guide is available through the national CAMRA shop.

The Solihull and District CAMRA website is the local branch site for the Campaign for Real Ale covering Solihull and the surrounding district. It is a practical noticeboard and reference for anyone interested in local pubs, real ale and cider: branch news, upcoming socials and meetings, pub awards, a pub guide and archive material. It is a branch resource, not the national CAMRA site, and it links out to national CAMRA services such as the online shop and pub guide.

Who it is for and what you can find

The site serves two overlapping audiences: local CAMRA members who want branch dates and member benefits, and the wider public looking for pub recommendations or local beer events. The main menu gives a clear map of what is available:

• News and diary – branch and pub news plus a branch diary of socials and meetings.
• Pub information – a pub guide, pub awards and recommendations, and local pub history.
• Drink and reading – the Solihull Drinker magazine, advertising information, and a real ale jargon buster.
• Events – local beer festivals and events, plus previous branch socials and festivals.
• Membership and archive – a members' area, local discounts for CAMRA members, a join link, and the Solihull CAMRA archive.

What the branch is currently highlighting

The homepage carries time-specific notices, so treat dates as a snapshot rather than a permanent calendar. At the time of the page content:

• The 2027 Good Beer Guide is described as available, with a link to the national CAMRA shop. The branch congratulates selected pubs and clubs, including three in the Solihull area that have been selected every year for the last 10 years: the Fieldhouse, the Pup and Duckling, and the Knowle and Dorridge Cricket Club.
• The September issue of Solihull Drinker can be downloaded, and magazines back to 1982 are available through the archive.
• Branch socials and meetings listed include a Christmas Crawl on Saturday 12 December 2026, a branch meeting on Monday 2 November 2026 at the Forest Hotel, Dorridge, a Young Members Autumn Forum on Saturday 7 November 2026, and a branch meeting on Wednesday 2 December 2026 at the Fieldhouse, Solihull.
• Pub news includes the Orange Tree being closed for refurbishment and reopening on 20 November, the Boot at Lapworth reopening on 17 October after refurbishment, and the new Mallard in Tidbury Green opening on 15 October. It also notes that Fieldhouse and other Ember Inns extended a cask ale promotion to the end of December, with cask ales reduced to £3.50 per pint on production of a voucher in the Ember Inns app.
• Local events listed include the St Alphege Beer Festival on Friday 30–Saturday 31 October 2026 and the Kidderminster Beer & Cider Festival on Thursday 12–Saturday 14 November 2026.

How to use it

1. Check the diary first if you want to attend something. The branch diary and the homepage event list are the places to confirm dates, times and venues before travelling.
2. Use the pub guide and awards pages when choosing where to drink. These reflect branch recommendations rather than a national ranking.
3. Read the magazine or archive if you want local coverage or historical material; the archive goes back to 1982.
4. Join or contact the branch through the membership link or the membership secretary address given on the page if you want member discounts and branch updates.

Limits to keep in mind

The site is a branch publication, so opening hours, promotions and event details can change after they are posted; confirm with the pub or venue before relying on them. The page does not state prices for membership or publications, and it does not say whether any areas require login beyond the members' area link, so check the relevant page or contact the branch for those details. For national campaigns, the Good Beer Guide shop and the national pub guide, follow the site's outbound links to CAMRA's national services.

To join Solihull and District CAMRA, contact the branch membership secretary, Dave, at the branch email address shown on the website, or use the national CAMRA "Join us" link in the site menu. The branch welcomes anyone who shares its interest in pubs and real ale or cider. The site does not publish subscription prices or an online branch sign-up form, so confirm current fees and the joining process directly with the membership secretary or through the national CAMRA site.

Who the branch is for

The Solihull and District CAMRA site describes itself as the local branch of the Campaign for Real Ale and invites people who share a passion for pubs and real ale or cider to become members. Membership is handled through CAMRA, with the branch acting as the local point of contact.

Ways to join

Contact the branch membership secretary

The homepage names Dave as membership secretary and gives a branch email address for membership enquiries. Write to that address to ask about joining, current subscription options, and any local branch activity for new members. The address appears on the page in a reversed format to deter automated collection, so read it carefully and enter it in the normal order when emailing.

Use the national CAMRA joining route

The site menu includes a "Join us" link alongside "National CAMRA" and "National pub guide" entries, which take you to CAMRA's national membership information. Joining nationally makes you a member of CAMRA and connects you to your local branch.

What membership connects you to

The branch site lists the activities and benefits that members can take part in:

• Branch socials and meetings — for example, a Christmas Crawl on Saturday 12 December 2026 and branch meetings including Monday 2 November 2026 at the Forest Hotel, Dorridge, and Wednesday 2 December 2026 at the Fieldhouse, Solihull.
• Local discounts for CAMRA members — a dedicated page in the site menu.
• The Solihull Drinker magazine — the branch magazine, with a downloadable September edition, plus an archive of magazines and predecessors going back to 1982.
• Pub awards and recommendations, a pub guide, and local beer festival and event listings.
• A members' area on the website.

Checking before you commit

Because the site does not state membership rates, payment methods, or whether any joining step can be completed online, treat those details as unconfirmed until you hear back from the membership secretary or check the national CAMRA pages. If you want to sample the branch first, the branch meetings and socials listed on the site are open events to look out for, and the pub news and festival listings give a sense of local activity before you join.