The café will serve customers from midday until 2am, seven days a week, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter
A café in Walthamstow has been given permission to open until the early hours, despite concerns from its neighbours.
TBC Sheperds Bush [sic], in Hoe Street, will serve customers from midday until 2am, seven days a week.
Green-led Waltham Forest Council granted the licence in full at a licensing hearing last week.
But despite the support from the committee – made up of elected councillors – eight residents living nearby formally objected to the scheme.
One resident said she was “very concerned” as the late finish would not be “appropriate for an area where many people live and need peace and quiet during the night”.
She added that the busy area “already experiences noise and disruption from traffic, customers and delivery drivers” and “allowing the premises to remain open until 2:00am would only increase these problems”.
Other residents raised concerns with the conduct of delivery drivers – who are not directly affiliated with the business – and complained they “frequently stop on the road, block access, park inconsiderately, and create hazards for pedestrians”.
In a bid to assuage these fears, the committee recommended the operators of TBC Sheperds Bush “proactively engages” with its nearest neighbours and offers a point of contact for any issues, alongside discussing with fellow late-night business owners on how they can “jointly monitor delivery drivers to ensure that no nuisance is caused”.
Unlike licensing conditions, these are not legally binding and the venue does not need to honour them.
The applicants laid out a series of procedures they would follow in a bid to uphold the four licensing objectives – preventing crime and noise, upholding public safety, and protecting children from harm.
Staff will be trained to “remain vigilant” and monitor the volume of customers coming into the venue, in line with a capacity limit. Any suspicious behaviour or activity will be reported to management and, “where necessary, the police”.
Delivery drivers will be asked not to leave their engines idling by the premises and employees will keep the front of the shop clear of debris or litter.
Additionally, the café will operate a “robust” CCTV system and keep an extensive incident log, recording all crimes reported to the venue, the ejection of any customers, any complaints about noise or disorder, and any visits from the police or Waltham Forest.
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