24/7 alcohol licence for Northamptonshire village shop granted despite objections from residents

Residents said they were fearful of anti-social behaviour and disturbance if the licence was approved, but were told that there was no evidence of crime surrounding the shop and no objections from police.

Applicant Samy (County) Limited was given permission to extend its premises licence for a Morrisons Daily on 19 High Street in Broughton.

It is now able to sell alcohol 24/7 and late-night refreshments, which covers the sale of hot drinks, from 11pm to 5am.

North Northants Council (NNC) permitted the application on Monday (March 31) after hearing representations from the shop owners and neighbours.

In total, one complaint was made my Broughton Parish Council and a further seven were submitted by local residents.

Speaking against the application, Matthew Willmott, who livess next to the shop, said he thought the extended alcohol sales would be detrimental to the well-being of his young family and local community due to the late-night footfall and potential for anti-social behaviour.

The small high street shop was previously limited to selling alcohol at a reduced time from 7am to 10pm.

The licensing panel heard that the store’s opening times have already been changed to 24 hours so workers are able to stock shelves and prepare the floor overnight.

Pat Scouse, a Broughton parish councillor, also discussed issues with limited parking outside the store and increased disturbances from the 24-hour licence.

The licensing panel chairman, Cllr Jonathan Ekins, cut both speakers short, saying their points could not be considered in the application as they were based on ‘assumptions and possibilities’.

He said: “While I do appreciate that it’s a very real concern of the parish… we only deal with facts.

"You can’t assume what may happen if the licence is approved.”

Robert Botkai, who spoke on behalf of the applicant at the meeting, said: “There’s an anticipation or understandable fear about what may happen in the future. We have been open 24 hours since February and there’s no evidence of any anti-social behaviour.

“If the fears expressed by residents do materialise and all of a sudden the village has anti-social behaviour at night, or there’s noise nuisance or other issues, they can bring the battle to you by way of a licensing review.”

The NNC panel went into a private session to deliberate.

They made a decision to grant the full 24-hour alcohol licence and late-night refreshments permission to the Morrisons Daily.