Licensing Application: Cafe Oscars

Café Oscars
48 Ladywell Road
Lewisham
London
SE13 7UZ

Applied for sale of alcohol Monday – Friday 1100 – 1800, Saturday 1100 - 1700 & Sunday 1100 – 1600.

Any representations either way should reach Lewisham Licensing Team by 28th April 2010. E-mail licensing@lewisham.gov.uk.

New licensing application: Morley's, 6 Loampit Hill

We've received details of a new licensing application for Morleys on Loampit Hill. Fast food places don't need licences to operate up to 11pm, but they do if they want to operate after then. This is an application to allow Morleys to open until 2am everyday except Sunday, when it could open until 11pm, and to open 24 hours over the New Year holiday period.

"Please be advised that the following premise has applied for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003.

6 Loampit Hill
London
SE13 7SW

Sale of late night refreshment on & off the premises Monday – Saturday 11:00 – 02:00 & Sunday 11:00 – 23:00.

New Years eve to start of permitted hours on New Years Eve until end of permitted hours on New Year's day."

Any comments should be sent to Lewisham's licensing team at the address below, by 2nd November.

Licensing team

Laurence House, 5th Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU

Tel: 020 8314 6400

Email: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk

Licensing Application: Village News

We've been notified of a new licensing application in the ward:

Village News
226 Algernon Road
Lewisham
London
SE13 7AG

Applied for sale of alcohol off the premises Monday – Sunday 07:00 – 23:00.

If you wish to make any representations on this they should be sent to Lewisham's Licensing team by 1st May 2009. E-mail: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk or write to Licensing team, Laurence House, 2nd Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU. Tel: 020 8314 6400.

Licensing Application: The Rose Corner 255A Algernon Rd London SE13 7AG

The florist on Algernon Road has applied for a license to sell alcohol.

Please be advised that the following premise has applied for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003.

The Rose Corner
255A Algernon Road
Ladywell
London
SE13 7AG

Applied for sale of alcohol off the premises Monday – Saturday 09:00 – 17:30.

Any representations should be sent to the Licensing Team by 15th December 2008:

Licensing team

Laurence House, 2nd Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU

Tel: 020 8314 6400

E-mail: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk

Off-Licence Application on Loampit Hill

Licensing have received the following application for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003.

AJ Food
10 Loampit Hill
London
SE13 7SW

Applied for sale of Alcohol Off the premises Monday – Sunday 08:00 – 23:00

Any representations should reach the Licensing Team by 28th November 2008. E-mail: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk or post to: Licensing team, Laurence House, 2nd Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU. Tel: 020 8314 6400

Betting shops in the news

Who would have thought that the Gambling Act 2005, which came into force on 1 September last year and which I have earlier described as a sorry piece of legislation, would make national news? Well, it happened on Saturday when betting shops were the main news feature (alongside Peter Mandelson’s return to cabinet) on BBC Breakfast.

The Local Government Association, the umbrella organisation for local councils, has grave concerns about the impact of the new legislation and says it doesn’t work as it has led to a considerable increase in the number of betting shops particularly in deprived areas. Unsurprisingly, this mirrors our arguments against the betting licence application for the new bookies on Brockley Road. The BBC go onto it and came to Lewisham to do part of a feature for the Saturday Breakfast programme with local campaigner Glenda Rodgers and Sue (who was ultimately edited out of the final version). They then invited me to be interviewed live on Saturday morning, not about the battle over Brockley Road in particular but about the general implications of the proliferation of bookies for local communities and local councils.

It’s a bit difficult to make all the valid points in two or three minutes, especially if this was your first live TV interview and you had to get up at 5 a.m. after a busy week, but I feel a local campaigner from Hackney and I were able to retort the arguments in favour of the new legislation much better than the owner of a smaller chain of betting shops was in responding to the arguments against.

Lewisham has had its fair share, with the total number of betting shops going up by five to 77 in only a few months since the appeal against the Council’s decision to turn down the application for Brockley Road was decided in favour of the applicant in May. The fact that there is now a national campaign is definitely good news. It won’t change anything for Brockley Road, but if it ultimately leads to a change in the legislation towards better regulation and more power for local councils to take decisions for the benefit of their communities, that is a step in the right direction.

Off-licence Application: Peacocks Food & Wine 103 Ladywell Road

I've received notification of the following application from Licensing:

Application for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Licensing Act
Peacock Food Wine
103 Ladywell Road
Lewisham
London
SE13 7JA

Applied for sale of Alcohol Off the premises Monday – Sunday 06:00 – 00:00.

If you wish to make any representations, they need to reach Licensing by 30th October 2008.
Licensing team
Laurence House, 2nd Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU
Tel: 020 8314 6400. E-mail: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk

This is the shop which until recently was YOGI's newsagents but is now under new management. This would mean that there would be 3 off-licences on Ladywell Road, plus the 'local' one on Algernon (I can't remember off the top of my head if Village News has an alcohol licence or not). Is this something readers of this blog feel strongly about, or not?

Betting Shop Application Rejected - again!

Ute just called me from the town hall to say that the licensing committee turned down the application by Portland Bookmakers to open a betting shop on the corner of Brockley Road/Adelaide Avenue, on the grounds that they couldn't guarantee children and vulnerable people would be protected.

A great victory for local residents and for common sense, in spite of the new legislation which seems designed to encourage gambling and make it more difficult for local authorities to reject applications. This application apparently received more objections than any other Lewisham licensing application that officers could remember.

Well done to all those who worked so hard to oppose this. The applicant still has the right to appeal at the magistrates court, but in the meantime, perhaps the debate can continue here or on Brockley Central about what kind of business you would like to see in that premises.

Here we go again, another betting shop application . . .

Barely have we had time to celebrate Friday's decision at Bromley Magistrates Court and I have received the following from the council's licensing department today:

Please be advised that the following premise has applied for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Gambling Act 2005.
Premises name and address
Portland Bookmakers
329-331 Brockley Road
London SE4 2QZ
Applied for a new Premises Licence for the following purposes – Betting Office
Representations should relate to one of the following licensing objectives
1. To prevent gambling from being a source of Crime & Disorder
2. To ensure that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way
3. To protect children & other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling

Any representations should reach licensing by 10th October 2007. Licensing team, Laurence House, 2nd Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford SE6 4RU. E-mail: licensing@lewisham.gov.uk

The previous application was heard by Bromley Magistrates Court, but since then regulations have changed and it will now be heard by the Council's licensing committee. Please note that grounds for objection are slightly different now too, so any letters you may have been planning to recycle will need to be modified accordingly.

Betting Shop Application - refused!

Just found out that the application by Portland Bookmakers to open a betting shop in the former Homeview Video premises on the corner of Adelaide Avenue and Brockley Road was turned down yesterday by magistrates. Hurray! The applicant may well apply again, but this time to the council as the licensing procedures have recently changed. Watch this space. Meanwhile, local residents and shopkeepers can breathe a huge sigh of relief and give themselves a pat on the back for all the hard work they put into opposing this application.

Update (Sunday am): Just seen on Nick's blog that Glenda, one of the residents most active in opposing the application, has posted an account on a new blog.

Licensing Application: Cafe Neu

FYI, from the licensing team:

The following premise has applied for a NEW / VARIATION Premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003.

Café Neu
300 Brockley Road
London
SE4 2RA

Applied for live music Friday –Saturday 19:00 – 23:00 & sale of alcohol Monday – Saturday 12:00 – 23:00 & Sunday 13:00 – 20:00.

Prevention of Crime and Disorder.
1. Protection of Children from Harm
2. Public Safety
3. Prevention of Public Nuisance

Any representations should reach licensing by 9th August 2007.

Betting shop application - new date for hearing

Ute's just told me that a new date has been set for the conclusion of the part-heard hearing regarding the betting shop licence for 329-331 Brockley Road (formerly Homeview Video Shop). Friday, 7 September 2007 at 10.00 at Bromley Magistrates Court, London Road, Bromley, Kent BR1.

Betting Shop License Hearing

As reported on Nick's Brockley Central blog here and here, the license hearing at Greenwich Magistrates' Court for the application by Portland bookmakers to operate a betting shop at the former Homeview video shop (corner of Adelaide Avenue and Brockley Road) started on Thursday. It was due to last two days, but they didn't finish hearing all the evidence so it has been adjourned until a future date as yet to be announced. Ute attended on both days and gave evidence on the second day. A considerable number of concerned local residents and Romayne (Brockley ward councillor) also attended.

All six councillors from Ladywell and Brockley ward have formally objected to the application. We are concerned that there will be a concentration of betting shops in a small area, to the detriment of the row of shops as a whole and the local community. The slightly bizarre thing that has emerged in all this is that it is a bit of a David vs Goliath case, with Portland, the small independently-run bookies up against the might of Coral and their team of legal advisers. It feels a little strange to be on the same side as the giant versus the small independent business, but it is a case of too many bookies in the area rather than what type of bookies they may be.

Wonder if Corals are taking bets on the outcome of this one ;).

(added on 15/05/07)
Just read an article from yesterday's Observer about a similar situation in Clapton. It seems the law is changing in September and the demand criteria is being removed, which I guess will mean that the only legal grounds upon which current objections to the Portland application are based will have gone. Does that mean that whatever the outcome of the court hearing, the manager of Portland can just sit tight and then apply again in September? Hmmm, will try to find out more.

Resonance FM Programme about Homeview

Local resident, Alex Fitch, has a weekly radio show on Resonance FM, and his programme yesterday focussed on the closure of Homeview on Brockley Road. The programme can be downloaded from Alex's blog. This photo of the demo on 11th February, where Alex interviewed me for the programme, along with other local residents, is also swiped from Alex's blog. Thanks to Alex for sending me the link to the programme. See also my earlier post on the betting shop application.