There are fears that a North London pub’s plan to open a second floor until the early hours of the morning could lead to further crime and antisocial behaviour. The Met Police called the 27 recorded crimes linked to the venue “one of the highest in the borough” for any public house.
The North London Tavern on Kilburn High Road has submitted an application to Brent Council to expand the premises licence to also allow the sale of alcohol and the playing of live music to the early hours on the first floor. This has concerned both the police and local residents, who feel increasing the capacity could exacerbate existing problems of excessive noise, fighting, and street drinking, according to submissions to the licensing committee.
In documents filed against the application, the police point to “recent problems of crime and disorder” at the pub on match days at Wembley Stadium and a “loss of control” by the venue resulting in football fans spilling into the streets carrying drinks.
The police also highlighted the 27 crimes that had been recorded against the venue which included seven incidents of violent crime over the past year.
Incidents included a man being threatened by someone with a hammer in September 2022 and a punter being robbed of a gold necklace in December of the same year. In February this year, police were called when a punter allegedly punched and spat at a worker after getting their drink taken off them before then allegedly gouging the eyes and biting the wrist of a security guard.
Local councillor Ryan Hack also made a formal objection to the plan, which he said will “present some real challenges” to the local community. If approved, Cllr Hack said the changes risk “an increase in antisocial behaviour and violent crime, establishing a hot spot for night-time drinking and will also present challenges in terms of litter and the possibility of drug-selling”.
Four residents have raised concerns about increasing the number of people at the venue. One who lives “extremely close” to the venue said: “There is already a large amount of noise, disruption, disorder and litter from the venue – particularly on match days and when there is live music. Having increased activity with more capacity later will mean more noise and antisocial behaviour.”
Another said: “[…] already the noise from the live music and drunk customers keeps us awake some nights. Even with the current licence, customers often hang around late outside, urinate and drink more by our property.”
The application will go before the council’s alcohol and entertainment licensing sub-committee on Tuesday (August 15), where a decision on whether or not to give the plan the go ahead will be decided.
