The move will see the minimum wage for both permanent employees and third-party contractors increase from £6.50 to £7.85, with a further rise to £8.25 next year.

Luke Raven, Co-Director at Ilkley Brewery explained: “We are proud to be raising our voice amongst a growing number of businesses across the UK who support their staff by paying the Living Wage.

“Our beer is made by people, by hand, and we rely on their passion and commitment. By recognising their hard work in this way, we hope to be able to foster a greater sense of shared ownership in the long term project here at Ilkley Brewery.”

Living Wage Foundation director, Rhys Moore added: “We are delighted to welcome Ilkley Brewery to the Living Wage movement as an accredited employer.

“The best employers are voluntarily signing up to pay the Living Wage now. The Living Wage is a robust calculation that reflects the real cost of living, rewarding a hard day’s work with a fair day’s pay.

The shift is part of wider plans for the brewery that involves significant job creation, resulting in a 60% increase in staff by the end of this year, as well as further expansion.

Raven said: “As well as our ongoing commitment to the local community and to our employees, which are the building blocks for solid business, we are looking to capitalise on the current interest and energy within the beer sector.

“We have already invested over £140,000 in the infrastructure at Ilkley Brewery since August this year, including taking on an additional storage facility, and with additional expansion in the pipeline.

“I think this emphasises our commitment to grow Ilkley Brewery into one of the top independent breweries in the UK.”