A Derby shop’s bid for later opening hours on a busy street has been rejected after police revealed nuisance street drinkers were “fighting among themselves and with members of the public”.
The decision was made after residents expressed fear over violence and street drinking on Burton Road near the city centre.
Convenience shop Local Food Store requested permission from Derby City Council to open until 3am daily, instead of its normal closing time at midnight.
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But one 79-year-old said she felt vulnerable in her own home of 25 years after police told a meeting anti-social behaviour was rife on the street and crime levels had “tripled” in recent months.
She said her worried daughter regularly reports problems and sends photos to police on her behalf. The pensioner added she keeps the door on a latch when opening it in case there are unwelcome visitors.
Another woman who lives close by said there were “lots of people shouting and drinking” at night.
Derbyshire Police raised deep concern about Local Food Store’s request to remain open during the early hours at a meeting last week.
Officers told councillors 27 fines had been dished out and nuisance intoxicated street drinkers had been removed from the street recently – but there were still major problems.
Police feared later hours could exacerbate the problems which included street drinkers “fighting among themselves and with members of the public”.
The licensee for the premises did not attend the meeting on Monday, November 3 so councillors were unable to quiz the shop’s management on the reasons for permission.
But a police officer told them they had been told it was due to “business” reasons.
When making a licensing decision, Derby City Council must be satisfied the application meets its objectives. These include the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance and the protection of children from harm.
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The authority refused the Local Food Store on Burton Road application to open until 3am daily.
It was stated that the General Licensing Sub Committee (GLSC) rejected the application because it concluded there was “no good reason” to vary the opening hours and that it would impact the work of police officers and council officers to tackle the issues.
Minutes from the meeting state: “The GLSC questioned why the applicant would want to sell alcohol in the early hours but found no good reason and were concerned it would impact on the problems already described by the police in this area.”
