Nightclub to pay £76k in costs after losing appeal over cut in opening hours

A nightclub operator has been ordered to pay a London council more than £76,000 in costs after it lost an appeal over the curtailment of its opening hours.

The club, Public on the King’s Road in Chelsea, had been taken to review by residents in 2011 amid allegations of nuisance and disorder.

The licensing committee of the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea decided to change the terminal hours from 2 am to midnight.

Public then appealed to Hammersmith Magistrates’ Court. At a six-day hearing, it argued – amongst other things – that, in assessing whether the noise amounted to public nuisance, the court had to take into account that the club was located in a commercial area in which planning consent had been granted for late opening premises.

District Judge Williams concluded, however, that the test for nuisance was that set out in national guidance and approved in the Hope and Glory case in the High Court.

The judge acknowledged that the King’s Road was a mixed neighbourhood with a variety of commercial and residential premises, and was also a main thoroughfare for buses and taxis.

But she added that residents were entitled a decent night’s sleep and to the quiet enjoyment of their homes without having to endure levels of noise that amounted to a nuisance.

The judge held that there was a continuing nuisance and steps to abate it had proved ineffective. The genuine concerns of residents had not been properly addressed, she said, rejecting the appeal.

Philip Kolvin QC of Cornerstone Barristers acted for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.