A Spalding restaurant has had its Alcohol Premises Licence revoked, following a plainclothes police investigation.
The decision to revoke the licence of Station 25, Station Street, Spalding, was made following a hearing held in front of South Holland District Council Licensing Sub-Committee.
The committee agreed with the police that the premises had been operating as a club rather than a restaurant.
The committee said the operating style, coupled with poor management of the venue, resulted in “a blatant disregard for the conditions on the licence and the licensing regime in general.”
Because of this they believed the licensing objectives were being undermined and their licence was revoked.
Sgt Kim Enderby from the Alcohol Licensing Team said: “At the end of last year we began receiving reports of problems associated with this venue.
“The lives of local residents were being affected by the drunken behaviour of persons using Station 25, despite the fact that it was only licenced as a restaurant.
“Alcohol was only supposed to be available when purchased alongside food.
“Attempts were made to work with the owners to address our concerns but our intervention was ignored.
“We then actively began gathering evidence of anti-social behaviour and criminal offences being committed at this venue. Local officers paid visits to the venue, capturing how it was being operated on body worn cameras.
“We also used plainclothes officers, who entered the premises and were able to observe how it was being run. They were able to purchase alcohol freely as both on and off sales.
“It was obvious this premises was operating as a bar or club, in breach of its licence conditions and with staff who had inadequate knowledge or training. It is unacceptable for any type of licensed premises to cause problems for local residents.
“We do everything we can to promote and encourage lawful and responsible selling of alcohol. Those premises that fail or refuse to do this will have action taken against them.”
Insp Gareth Boxall said this is another example of a successful sustained investigation.
“These are not quick problems to fix and we have to obtain evidence,” he said, adding that while it might not look like they are investigating information given to them by the public, they often can’t reveal their investigations until they’re complete.
“We can’t always tell the public what we’re doing as that undermines the investigation,” Insp Boxall said.
“We appreciate every bit of information given to us from the public.”
