Hartlepool Borough Council decides licence for new convenience store amid concerns from Cleveland Police

An application was submitted to Hartlepool Borough Council by Mercy Raajanee Pathmarajan to gain permission for a newsagent’s and grocery shop selling alcohol at 78 Church Street.

The initial proposals sought to allow the store to sell alcohol from 7am until 11pm seven days a week, in line with planned opening hours.

But concerns were raised by Cleveland Police over the running of the shop, which resulted in the application going before the council’s licensing sub-committee.

Police legal representatives at the meeting said the Church Street area is already a “hotspot for crime which is linked to the night-time economy” and has seen a rise in assaults in recent years.

Along with antisocial behaviour concerns, they also warned the sale of single cans can lead to a pattern of people “begging in the street” for money to go in and purchase them.

The force therefore argued “the grant of the licence at all would not be appropriate” and asked councillors to put 14 conditions in place managing the store’s operation if they were to give approval.

These will include a reduction in the time alcohol can be sold, only being able to display it in designated areas and a ban on single cans being sold.

The committee ultimately decided to grant the licence with all of the conditions in place, along with only allowing the shop to sell alcohol during the reduced hours of 8am until 10pm.

Speaking in support of the application, Prabu, proposed designated premises supervisor, stressed they would comply with the licensing objectives.

He said: “We’re not a supermarket, we’re just a small shop.

“Other shops can sell single cans, so why can’t we? If I’m not selling any, they can just buy from the next shop.

“I don’t like the thought of my kids drinking or smoking, it’s the same when it comes to the community, I won’t sell to underage people.”

He added they were happy to comply with the majority of the police’s proposed conditions, including keeping CCTV coverage and recordings, having an incident book and not selling alcohol to anyone already intoxicated.