A new arts and nature festival coming to Devon is set to be another trade boost for local brewer Ivybridge, a social enterprise admired for its fine beers and employment stand creating jobs for those with learning disabilities and autism. Named after its home town on the southern edge of Dartmoor’s National Park, the Ivybridge Brewing Co recently secured £25,000 growth funding from social impact investor Resonance to upgrade its new taproom and increase the size of the brewery and cold room.
As its new fermenter gets to work demand is growing for its core range of award-winning beers. Bestseller is the light and citrusy Erme Pale with Citra and Azzaca hops, while a slightly bitter India pale ale Moorland Mosaic weaves in stone fruit flavours. Floral and malty Pils 21 pilsner lager and malty Redlake American Amber Ale with orange fruit notes complete the quartet. On the seasonal front choice is maintained with a honeycomb stout, a chocolatey porter and two hazy pales featuring new UK hop varieties Olicana and Jester.
It was having a daughter with learning disabilities that prompted founder Simon Rundle, a marine biologist, to launch the start-up in 2018. Seeing her potential and that of her friends to be part of the working world. “I wanted to make a difference and overcome the employment barriers they face,” he explains. ‘Great beer changing lives’ became Ivybridge’s motto but “we’ve realised that extends beyond the people who come in and work with us”, says Rundle.
“It encompasses all our customers visiting the taproom – their lives are changed just by experiencing a world where people with learning disabilities and autism work in a welcoming and positive environment at the heart of the community.”
The social enterprise sold over 10,000 bottles and 16,000 pints across its taproom and at Darts Farm and Greendale Farm shops, The Box, the National Trust, the Watermark, several restaurants and the Arts Centre in Ashburton. The company, aiming for 20 per cent growth and a £170,000 turnover in 2027/28, has a team of five staff supported by 11 trainees. Five are paid and six gain work experience. A further five volunteers help run sessions. An advisory board includes professionals from the brewing and education sectors. “We have used their expertise to grow the business in a gradual, incremental way that has allowed us to keep a focus on our social goals,” explains Rundle who is seeing a location move to the centre of town and adding an extra unit now paying off.
Locals make up the majority of customers, but the company also supplies retail business in the Plymouth and Exeter areas. But the challenge of operating in a small town remains “so we are always looking for opportunities to expand. One option is adding an extra taproom in another town or city,” says Rundle who also plans to add a food offering such as pizza and increase the number of outdoor events and deliveries the company carries out.