New microbrewery to 'showcase the talents of disabled people'

Positive response: the team at Ignition Brewery

A non-profit microbrewery run by people with learning disabilities is to open a bar after raising £24,000 in a month-long crowdfunding campaign.

Sydenham-based Ignition Brewery, launched in 2015 by start-up expert Will Evans, 34, and macro-economist Nick O’Shea, 40, aims to “showcase the talents of disabled people”.

Their team of ten full and part-time brewers “de-automated a lot of the [brewing] process”, creating London Living Wage roles for all. They sustained the enterprise through selling to local businesses and pubs but all dreamed of opening and working in a bar.

Following discussions with Lewisham Council, they obtained a full license and permission to open Ignition TapRoom at the front of the brewery building, overlooking Sydenham High Street. A month-long fundraising campaign concluded this week after raising more than £24,000 from a £20,000 target needed to fund an initial opening in September.

Mr Evans, of Nunhead, said: “We had people sharing the Crowdfunder over forums in Sydenham, the South East, beer groups, it is absolutely fantastic. The whole process was incredibly positive.

“We built everything by hand for the brewery – we had to remove the windows from the back room to get the kit inside. Now we brew, bottle and label on-site, so every bottle of beer you see at Ignition has just been made in the backroom of a community centre.

“For us the obvious next step was this TapRoom, partly because the thing that the guys really love doing is being able to take the beer they have made, sell it to the public and watch them enjoy it.

“It will provide opportunities for jobs, offer community events and be a great place for a winning night out.”

He added: “Brewing is a really good fit for what we need [working with people with disabilities]... It is a business model that is financially viable and sustainable - our core purpose is about providing people with jobs, so more beer, more jobs.”

For more information, visit crowdfunder.co.uk

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