The London brewery changing lives in its community

The Ignition Brewery and tap room in Sydenham might be small, but it’s impact on those with learning disabilities is huge, writes Mick O’Hare

‘The beer we brew has to be good enough to go on sale so we can keep the project going’ (Ignition Brewery)

Ignition brewery has recently been making waves in beery circles, and not just for the quality of its output, which, if you want to try it for yourself, you’ll have to get yourself to Sydenham in south London because Ignition’s beer is rarely found outside its own postcode.

That’s mainly because it’s brewed in a Lewisham Council-run community centre and output is so limited that most of it is drunk within a few metres of the brewery. But perhaps of more significance, everybody who works at Ignition – save for the company directors, head brewer and bar manager – has a learning disability. That’s about 70 per cent of the staff.

Nick O’Shea, the founder of the brewery, had been volunteering with Mencap for 10 years when seven years ago a chance talk with a nun – Sister Els – in a pub led to the launch of Ignition. “I was telling her that I wanted to create jobs for people with learning disabilities but what could I do?” He says. “We were in a bar. We looked at our beer glasses and she said ‘this?’” O’Shea gave up a job in economics, bought an unused brewing kit for £1 and approached Lewisham Council to see if they had space for his project. Now, in the corner of the Sydenham community centre, sits the Ignition Brewery and Tap Room.