Last chance to comment on Shad Thames licensing saturation zone

In June Southwark Council's licensing committee voted to hold consultations on so-called licensing saturation policies in Shad Thames, Peckham and Camberwell.

The proposed saturation zone would cover the area bounded by Tower Bridge Road, the river, St Saviour's Dock and Tooley Street. This area currently has 34 licensing premises.

The deadline for responses is Wednesday 31 October; a questionnaire is available from this page.

Figures published by the council show that in the past five years a total of nine of the licensed premises in the Shad Thames area have given rise to a total of 85 noise nuisance complaints with one premises being responsible for nearly two-thirds of these complaints.

There were five recorded instances of violence against the person between 11pm and 4am in the Shad Thames area during the period December 2006 to May 2007.

The effect of a saturation policy, if implemented, would be that no further licences will be granted to similar premises unless the applicant can demonstrate that the licensing of their premises will not add to the problems that have already been identified.