On 29 Mar 2014 at 9:04am Spearmint Elly wrote:
Application to grant a Premises Licence
Name of applicant
E&C Pub Ltd
Full postal address
Elephant & Castle,Whitehill,
Lewes,
BN7 2DJ
Proposed licensable activities
To add Plays and Films Sunday to Thursday 8.30am to 1am, and
Friday and Saturday 8.30am to 2am
To increase sale of alcohol for consumption on and off the premises
Sunday to Thursday from 8.30am to 1am, and
Friday and Saturday 8.30am to 2am.
To increase the provision of late night refreshment
Sunday to Thursday 11pm to 1am, and
Friday and Saturday 11pm to 2am.
The details of this application may be viewed online or in the Licensing Register at Southover House during opening hours.
Any persons wishing to make representation in respect of the above must do so in writing to the Licensing Officer at the above address within 28 days of 13 March 2014.
Check it out here »
On 29 Mar 2014 at 9:53am huw wrote:
If anyone would like to come and talk to me about the new license application I would be more than happy to have a chat with you.
The idea is not to use the full extent of the license but to have it to use when needed.
At the moment I spend over £100 a year on temporary event notices for sports events and a very occasional party. This license will save me money over after 2/3 years as I will no longer have to apply for extensions on a case by case basis.
Also, I have included an application to be able to host plays and films (although there is no firm plan to do either yet as films would require yet another license to be applied for to make it legal) so that our function room can be used for even more community events than it is already.
As stated before, please feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss it. My email address in my first name then @elephantandcastlelewes.co.uk or you can phone up the pub or even just walk in and ask for me.
On 29 Mar 2014 at 11:49am Mr Mantell wrote:
I am all for it. Pubs do more for communities than we give them credit for. Fair play to the Elly for looking to diversify
On 29 Mar 2014 at 2:49pm Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
Thanks for the explanation, Huw.
It sounds like an excellent plan.
On 29 Mar 2014 at 4:42pm The Kronic wrote:
To be honest Huw, i don't know why you have to explain yourself to spineless retards such as the post starter. Good luck, love the Elly.
On 29 Mar 2014 at 4:44pm bastian wrote:
we've lost alot of pubs in lewes over the years, do what you have to do to keep going, and evryone knows the music has to get turned down after a named time, so go for it.
Pubs are community.
On 29 Mar 2014 at 7:40pm Eater of Ellyburgers wrote:
Personally I'd like to find the host of this thread and stab him in the eyes. Good for nothing sh1t stirring tw4t that he is.
Good luck Huw, hope it all goes your way.
On 30 Mar 2014 at 12:21am Neighbour wrote:
Huw, I think anyone would support this, but please be aware that since Licensing laws changed the neighbours of pubs are now being woken up in the early hours of the morning by sozzled customers going home, rather than an hour or so earlier when we were still awake. It can be really bad, with screaming matches and vandalism at 3 in the morning in an otherwise silent street instead of midnight, which is why at one point there was a behaviour order in your area. No one is unreasonable, and we want great pubs that can be open, and be used, but please just bear this in mind to ensure everyones support. Thanks.:-)
On 30 Mar 2014 at 7:14am Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
I can't really see what a licensee can do about conduct of customers once they're away from his/her premises, I'm afraid.
I think a police presence in the town centre at night be more effective in controlling noise and nuisance.
Much as I love a beer or several, and hate to see pubs going to the wall, I'd never live near one because of the noise. I'm afraid I laugh when people buy a house practically next door to a pub and then complain about it practically from the off.
Someone who bought one of the newly converted houses in Mount Place started complaining about the noise from the Lewes Arms within a week or two of moving in, I can't believe he didn't realise a pub would be noisy.
On 30 Mar 2014 at 7:40am wrote:
Well exactly, sorry that pub was ther eto ruin your idealist way of country life out of London. Lewes was a pub town, and most people act well, some dont, and that's embarrassing, but dont shhhh me over
On 30 Mar 2014 at 9:18am The Kronic wrote:
And exactly what drugs are you on today, whoever posted that above !!!!!
On 30 Mar 2014 at 10:47am huw wrote:
Thanks for the messages of support (although threats of stabbing don't quite help the cause).
Neighbour, just a little point. The Behaviour order was due to the street drinkers in the Pells and Malling fields using Talbot Terrace and St John's Terrace/Hill to get back home and vandalising cars. Yes it was in the area of the pub but it was in no way attached to the premises.
The big problem with late night noise in the area is that it is a thoroughfare to Malling, Landport and the area around King Henry's Road (I should know what that areas called but it escapes me at the moment) for most people who have been out anywhere in town or are coming home by train/bus. I can't say for sure if this has been exacerbated by late licenses or not.
We do try to minimise noise where possible; we voluntarily close the garden at 11pm (and will continue to do so), we don't allow drinks outside the front of the pub. The other month we were open until 4am for the Super Bowl for the second year running and didn't get any complaints.
Once again, if you do have anything that you would like me to take into consideration please feel free to pop in and see me.
On 31 Mar 2014 at 8:56am Pells Seagull wrote:
Perhaps the issue here is that whilst people who live near a pub (that is situated in a relatively quiet residential area) do not mind the associated noise from a pub being open until the traditional 11pm or even midnight, they have a right to object to a pub closing at 2am and the the extra noise and disturbance created by people who have been consuming alcohol for an extra 2 or 3 hours as they head home
I think the Elly is a fantastic pub but I do feel you to have to draw a line in the sand and say at what point does commercial gain override the rights of people in the surrounding to enjoy a decent night's sleep.
As for Annette Curtin-Twitcher's comment about laughing at people who live near pubs, I think it's fair to say you should expect noise up until a point but I think 2am is well beyond that point.
On 31 Mar 2014 at 12:32pm Red Eyed wrote:
I am not sure why people think that is only those people who live near a pub that are woken up and affected by it's customers. I do not live near a pub, but i do live on the route home for many loud customers. It did not used to be a problem, but because of these late hours now is. It is unpleasant and unfair, and Pubs need to take some responsibility for this, in the same way i take the view that it is my responsibility to be reasonable and allow them some dispensations too.
On 31 Mar 2014 at 1:26pm annmarie wrote:
its a fab idea will you have licence before world cup : )
On 31 Mar 2014 at 1:59pm Pells Seagull wrote:
Its just been announced that all pubs have been granted a licencing extension for the World Cup which is great news. The Elly is the best pub to watch Football in Lewes so I'm all for that.
I'm just worried that allowing the Elly to potentially open until 2am every weekend could be a nightmare for people living in the surrounding streets.
On 31 Mar 2014 at 2:51pm huw wrote:
Pells Seagull, I appreciate your concern and would be happy to talk through the plans with you and anyone who would like to know more details.
The idea is very much not to use the hours we are going for but to have them available for the few occassions that they would be wanted. As stated above the yearly cost of getting the occasional extension is starting to mount up and this is a way to help my business.
Please feel free to contact me and hopefully I will be able to put your mind at ease.
On 31 Mar 2014 at 3:56pm Pells Seagull wrote:
In this day and age, I do agree that we all have to save money where we can. And I also agree that local pubs must be protected as they are incredibly important to me and the local community. My worry is that granting 'nightclub' licencing hours is an awful lot of freedom just to save the monetary equivalent of half a pint of beer a week. If there was some kind of agreement written into the application that guaranteed that the license would only be used in the way Huw describes (i.e. there would be only a minimal increase in the number of extended openings) then I could perhaps give my support.
On 1 Apr 2014 at 12:13am Castle Gate wrote:
Is it a shock that many pubs in Lewes already have surprisingly late licencing hours? They simply don't use them. Contented neighbours are a precious commodity.
For example, check the link I have added below. The John Harvey Tavern already has a 2am weekend licence, despite never using it under normal circumstances. The bars at Pelham House and The Rights of Man can stay open to drinkers until 1.30am seven days a week (and, for Pelham House residents, their alcohol licence is 24/7). Want a drink at 1am? There's The Lamb, The King's Head, The Black Horse, The Swan and The Crown: all with a 1am licence on Fridays and Saturdays. The bars at Glyndebourne have a TWENTY-FOUR HOUR licence. But pub licencees survive by the goodwill of their neighbours, who, being proximate, are their most convenient customers. Balance will prevail. It usually does.
Prize for earliest drink of the day? The Lamb (my favourite), licenced from 9 o'clock in the morning. Cheese Please has an 8am licence, but is it ever used?
Check it out here »
On 1 Apr 2014 at 8:35am The Old Mayor wrote:
Use it, or lose it, is what I say. Loss of revenue for the council, if blanket licences are granted and not used. Cheese Please must have an Off Licence, which is different. Can't pop in there for a small sherry !
On 1 Apr 2014 at 10:12am Streeb Greebling wrote:
Granting a nightclub licence in order to facilitate a few late evening community shindigs appears to me to be somewhat akin to granting the local nursery school a firearms certificate in order to enable the children to play with their water pistols.
On 1 Apr 2014 at 11:19am huw wrote:
Castle Gate, thank you for your input, it's true that most pubs have longer operating hours than ours (and don't use them). I am hoping to get a license that is more on par with the rest of the pubs in Lewes but am not looking to use them on a regular basis.
I have not increased the times allowed for recorded or live music (which would be necessary to run a night club) as I realise that the noise created by music would not be appropriate in a residential area. I think I may have gone for an extra half hour of music on Christmas and New Years Eve (on which I'm allowed to open for 24 hours but unlike many other pubs have never gone further than about 1am).
Once again, if you would like to talk to me please feel free to drop in. I'm here all of today although may be busy behind the bar in the evening.
On 1 Apr 2014 at 2:29pm Albert Square wrote:
Huw seems a thoroughly nice and reasonable chap. I've not been to the Elly for a long time but will go there to watch the football tonight after seeing his responses here.
On 4 Apr 2014 at 1:02am Local Resident wrote:
Why has the post by Eater of Ellyburgers not been withdrawn? It is utterly offensive. Who is monitoring this Forum?
Let's get away from having to say how great Huw and the Elly and community are etc. - which they all are - BUT focus on genuine LEGITIMATE concerns:
1) The E&C pub is in a residential area. Late night drinking can, and often does have, a serious impact on the people living in the immediate vicinity, and others living close to this area. Being a USER of the pub and all its many community aspects, can be a very different experience to being a resident in the location of, or near, the pub.
2) The existing hours can be pretty unbearable for local residents - you try getting to sleep when drinkers, hanging around in the area after closing, are screaming at each other, having races up your road, smashing in front doors (New Road), breaking into your car (Paddock Street) at 2 in the morning. It's not only older residents who are frightened and disturbed by this.
NOT the direct fault of the Elly, but I sure as hell don't want more opportunities for this behaviour.
3) What happens when Huw moves on? does the license go with him or stay with the pub? We trust Huw to behave with consideration - what are our guarantees for the future?
4) Does it have to be a license forever and ever amen – could it be for a year so we could see what happens?
Let's have a reasoned and reasonable discussion about this.
On 4 Apr 2014 at 5:56pm Another landlord wrote:
As Huw said go see him , not sure you all quite get it , and paddock street ? local resident ,
On 10 Apr 2014 at 10:01pm Ed Can Do wrote:
I believe Paddock Street is the one that joins up to Demontford Lane and Bradford Avenue at one end and joins the Offham Crescent at the other.