A premises licence enabling a proposed Rainham Lidl to serve alcohol has been approved.
The application was initially heard by Havering’s licensing sub-committee on September 5, at which the supermarket presented its case for the 7am to 11pm, Monday to Sunday licence.
One objection was submitted prior to the meeting, raising concerns about the potential impact on a school nearby and a rise in antisocial behaviour.
The sub-committee was scheduled to hear the application again on September 29 due to previously-undisclosed legal advice. However, the decision in full has now been uploaded onto the council’s website, with the follow-up hearing cancelled.
The reason for scheduling a second hearing, the decision says, was to ensure none of the sub-committee members shared the same ward where Lidl would be located, as dictated in Havering’s constitution.
It was confirmed not to be the case on September 15, and so the hearing was removed from the calendar.
In making their decision, the sub-committee members - Cllrs Natasha Summers, Jane Keane and Keith Prince - found “no evidence” granting approval would undermine the proposed supermarket’s licensing objectives.
The lack of representations against the application from responsible authorities, in particular the police - the sub-committee's "main source of advice with regard to crime and disorder" - was also noted.
Ten conditions were listed alongside the approval, including ensuring adequate training of staff about alcohol sales, the installation of a CCTV system which retains images for 28 days and can be provided to authorities within 48 hours, and a policy to challenge customers who look under 25.
Records also need to be kept of all training completed, with refresher courses to be taken every six months as a minimum.
Earmarked for a site on Rainham Road, the planning application for the construction of the Lidl remains undecided, despite being submitted back in March 2021, with a response from the council initially expected by the end of October last year.
A council spokesperson previously told this paper it had intended to refuse the application before Lidl appealed to the planning inspectorate, with both parties now awaiting a decision on the matter.
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