A measure being considered for South Holland which would allow the restriction of new alcohol sales licences may not be workable, but other action continues.
That is the message from Sgt Kim Enderby, of Lincolnshire Police’s alcohol licensing team, ahead of a district council licensing committee meeting on Tuesday (Oct 18), at which it will consider for a second time if there is evidence to push for a Cumulative Impact Policy (CIP).
There has been much recent concern over some of Spalding’s existing off-licences, where illicit alcohol and cigarettes have been found in recent raids, and new applicants who may be associated.
A CIP effectively creates a presumption that applications for new premises licences within an area will normally be refused.
Sgt Enderby told The Voice: “Quite rightly the council has looked at it and is revisiting it and that’s the most sensible thing to do.
“Having a fresh look at the statistics and seeing if anything has changed gives the opportunity for everyone to talk to each other and ensure if we can’t do that what else can be done.”
CIPs are most commonly used to restrict the number of pubs or nightclubs in an area rather than off-licences. To be approved there must be evidence of a clear link between alcohol related anti-social behaviour and the number of licensed premises.
A report to the licensing committee says the number of complaints recorded with Lincolnshire Police relating to street drinking in Spalding town centre dropped between April and July this year to ten compared to 18 in the same period last year and 29 in 2013. Noise nuisance complaints made to the council relating to licensed premises across South Holland rose from six in 2013 to 12 in 2016.
Sgt Enderby said he hoped the reduction in reported issues in Spalding was partly related to work undertaken to disrupt anti-social drinking issues but accepted not all incidents are reported.
He said police continue to work closely with the council, HM Revenue and Customs, immigration authorities and other partners to ensure everything possible is done to disrupt criminal and anti-social activity in licensed premises.
He added: “We appeal to members of the public not to suffer in silence. If we are not aware of anything occurring we can’t do anything about it.
“There won’t always be a police officer able to attend because of the day and age we live in, but if it is recorded we will do something about it.”
He also called on the public to report any known issues of illegal activity.
