Fears over bar in mill village opening later

A mill village on an "ale trail" could experience more anti-social behaviour if a bar is allowed to open later, an objector has said.

Empire House in Slaithwaite, near Huddersfield, has applied to Kirklees Council to extend the hours it sells alcohol by an hour and trade until 23:00 BST seven days a week.

The business is a workspace during the day and operates as a bar in the evenings, but an objection to the proposal has now been submitted on public safety grounds.

The member of the public said the village was facing "considerable difficulties" caused by late-night drinking already.

The current licence was first granted by the council in 2021, with representations expressing concern for public nuisance heard at the time, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The applicant said the later trading option would only be invoked from Thursday to Sunday and "very rarely" during the rest of the week.

The proposal has to be determined by Kirklees Council's licensing committee because of the objection being submitted.

The opponent claimed that the community was facing problems particularly relating to the "ale trail" and large groups of "boisterous drinkers" congregating on Station Road.

"We are deeply concerned that extended drinking hours could correlate with a discernible rise in alcohol-related anti-social behaviour such as audible profanities which we have previously experienced," the comment stated.

"Such a development would directly undermine public safety within our community, creating an environment of increased fear and insecurity for residents."

They added it would also place an "unwelcome burden" on law enforcement agencies.

The village is on the Transpennine Real Ale Trail route between the railway stations of Stalybridge and Batley.

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