Hospitality Loses 19 Licensed Premises a Week Ahead of Crunch Christmas

Britain’s number of pubs, bars, restaurants and other licensed premises has dropped by nearly 1,000 in the last 12 months, NIQ’s latest Hospitality Market Monitor reveals.

Data from NIQ, powered by CGA intelligence, shows the figure fell by 1.0% between September 2025 and September 2026, to 98,319. This represents 977 net closures, or an average of nearly 19 per week. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, numbers have dropped by 0.2%, or 245 sites, since June.

The steady stream of closures comes amid intense pressure on hospitality from a combination of rising costs and soft consumer confidence. It echoes other data from NIQ including the NIQ RSM Business Tracker, which has recorded sub-inflation growth for managed groups for 16 consecutive months. NIQ’s latest Business Confidence Survey with Zonal found that only 37% of leaders now feel optimistic about prospects for their business over the next 12 months. It leaves the sector hoping for support on costs and an injection of spending in the crucial Christmas and New Year trading period.

NIQ’s Hospitality Market Monitor highlights an intense churn of venues in hospitality in 2026. The three months to end-September saw 2,436 venues close their doors—around 27 per day—while 2,191 new ones opened, often in the same vacated premises.

The report flags a particularly challenging year for the casual dining sector, which has contracted by 2.2% year-on-year, following closures by various leading restaurant brands. This segment of hospitality has now shrunk by nearly a quarter (23.4%) since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

There are more positive trends in the accommodation-led sector, the Tracker shows. The number of licensed hotels rose by 0.2% in the 12 months to September, while the holiday and caravan park segment is up 0.7%. This partly reflects a surge in interest in domestic holidays in the aftermath of COVID, which has been sustained by some consumers’ desire to economise on trips as their household costs rise.

Karl Chessell, Director – Hospitality Operators and Food, EMEA at CGA by NIQ, said: “Net closures of nearly 1,000 licensed premises in the last 12 months highlight the pile-up of challenges facing hospitality. While there are encouraging pockets of growth, the general direction of travel is obvious, and the sector is now entering a critical couple of months. Meaningful support on this burden of costs is needed to protect thousands of vulnerable businesses from closure. With the right backing, alongside a stimulus to consumer spending, hospitality can give the UK economy the injection of growth and job creation that it needs.”