St Mary’s in Walthamstow Village has applied for a licence to serve alcohol and show films from midday until 10.30pm, and to push its closing time back from 4pm until 11pm, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter
A church in Walthamstow is seeking permission to host private and corporate events to sustain the cost of its outreach and community programmes.
St Mary’s Walthamstow, in Church End, has applied to Waltham Forest Council for a licence to serve alcohol and show films from midday until 10.30pm, and to push its closing time back from 4pm until 11pm.
The events will be “community-focused” and would range from fairs, drama productions, and concerts to wedding parties.
The church says its schedule will be “irregular” and it seeks a licence to “provide greater flexibility” in organising these events and to sell alcohol “on occasion”.
Being allowed to sell alcohol from 12pm would facilitate “low-key daytime” events such as markets or fetes, the church says, where stall-holders could sell drinks to drink either on the grounds or for customers to take home.
St Mary’s has a history of adhering to council-issued temporary event notices, but the proposals have been met with concern by some locals.
A resident of the neighbouring Monoux Almshouses said the potential frequency of the events could “reduce our privacy [and] peace of mind”.
“The music/noise of such a gathering will penetrate our homes at Monoux Almshouses, which are direct neighbours to St Mary’s Church,” she said.
She suggested the council granted an alcohol licence for weekends only, while Waltham Forest’s licensing team proposed six conditions to minimise the risks of public nuisance and disorder.
They include maintaining a refusals book to record every time a customer is refused alcohol and ensuring all staff selling drinks receive training on preventing underage sales and how to refuse drunk customers.
The application will go before the council’s licensing committee – made up of three elected councillors – next week.
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