Another 'sex license' bid in Leamington

Concerns have been raised after a second club in Leamington Old Town applied for a license to provide 'sexual entertainment' throughout the week.

Amara, a nightclub in Court Street, is pushing for the 'sexual entertainment venue' license, which would allow it to offer lap dancing and other shows at any time between 7.30pm to 3am Sunday to Thursday and until 4am on Fridays and Saturdays.

It comes just weeks after Shades club, in nearby High Street, revealed it was trying again to get the same license, having been refused in last June.

Under the Policing and Crime Act 2009 all premises such as Shades and Amara were re-classed as 'sexual entertainment venues' and had to apply for a new licence, failure to secure it meaning they can only provide 'adult entertainment' 11 times a year and no more than once per month.

The Shades application will be heard by Warwick District Council's licensing panel at Leamington town hall at 10am on Thursday, March 15.

Jonathan Chilvers of Warwick and Leamington Green Party, said of the new application: “Amara is close to local flats and houses which were built to provide accommodation for families with young children.

“It’s also close to the academy of dance, the Polish Centre, a dental practice and a medical centre.

“To have a lap dancing club so close to all of these community facilities is inappropriate and I am calling on the licensing committee to see sense.”

Shades' push for the license was rejected by the district council due to the negative effect the licensing panel felt it would have on the area.

Leamington mayor, coun Alan Wilkinson, said after it re-applied for the license last month that the venue would “bring the down the tone of an area we are trying to clear up.”

Bosses of both Amara and Shades have been approached for comment but the Observer has not had a reply.

Anger as Leamington lap-dancing club granted licence



RESIDENTS in Leamington Old Town have been left stunned by a council's decision to grant a premises a 'sexual entertainment licence' seven nights a week.

Last month Shades club in High Street was refused such a licence – due to the negative effect Warwick District Council felt it would have on the area – and it was widely expected the same decision would be made yesterday afternoon (Wednesday) on an application by Amara club in nearby Court Street.

But despite 50 letters of objection being sent in by neighbouring residents, the venue was granted a license, for at least one year, to allow 'adult entertainment' such as lap-dancing between 11pm and 3am Sunday and Thursday and from 11pm until 4am Friday and Saturday.

Leamington mayor, coun Alan Wilkinson, told the Observer he was “very very angry” at the decision.

He added: “It has really upset me. South town is in danger of becoming sleaze town and this decision doesn't give any respect to the people who live there. It sends out a message that their lives are not as important as those living in more affluent parts of the town.

“It has hugely set back our efforts to regenerate the area.”

Under the Policing and Crime Act 2009 all premises such as Amara and Shades were re-classed as 'sexual entertainment venues' and had to apply for a new licence, failure to secure it meaning they can only provide adult entertainment 11 times a year and no more than once per month.

On the Amara bid, the council said it had noted the premises was well run, entertainers would be subject to strict working conditions and customers would be required to obey a strict set of rules.

The council also accepted the applicant’s submission that there would be little or no effect on businesses, schools and places of worship in the area due to their opening hours not coinciding with the proposed hours for Amara.

The council committee, summing up its decision, wrote: “No objection was received by any of the relevant statutory bodies, including Warwickshire Police or children’s services.

“It was important to note that while people may have strong objections to sexual entertainment venues, parliament had already debated the moral and religious basis for them and the resulting legislation provided that they were legal where licenced.

“Furthermore, while we note the proximity of the premises to the residential properties in Tower Street, the committee did not consider Tower Street would constitute a residential area.”

Old Town is now ‘Sleaze Town’

ADULT entertainment such as semi-nude stage and private dancing will soon be taking place at a club in Leamington’s Old Town after councillors voted in favour of allowing it.

More than 50 people wrote to Warwick District Council to object to an application by Amara in Court Street (pictured) for a sex establishment licence.

But their pleas to the council’s regulatory committee to put residents’ interests first were not enough to prevent members - who spent five hours deliberating their decision on Wednesday - from agreeing to grant it.

After the meeting, Cllr Alan Wilkinson (Lab, Brunswick), who represents the ward where Amara is based, said the decision means Old Town (known to many as South Town) is regarded as second rate by the officials.

“South town will now be known as sleaze town,” he added.

“I believe that this decision means that the politicians of Leamington have failed to protect others.”

Putting forward the case for Natalie Beejadhur, who runs the club, solicitor Ian Besant explained that the club intends to allow women and men to “dance in various states of undress” on a stage and for patrons to be entitled to private dances between 11pm and 3am on weekday nights and between 11pm and 4am on Fridays and Saturdays.

He said: “The club expects to attract between 50 and 100 members per night. Its ethos is to be an expensive club which offers expensive wine, vodka and cocktails.”

Mr Besant pointed out that the places of religious worship and medical establishments near Amara, as well as the dance academy in Radford Road, operate at hours when there would be no sexual entertainments taking place. He also said that residents who were concerned about having to walk past the club could take a number of other routes to get to their homes.

Mr Besant added: “I understand that we live in a democracy and I am proud of that. People have the right to access adult entertainment as the Government has given them that right.”

But Leamington resident Bernard Davis, speaking as an objector, said the paths indicated as alternative routes for residents were dark and dangerous at night, adding: “Please take the interests of the local residents as the highest priority and not those of the rich who come to be entertained for a short period.”

Janet Alty, former chairman of Old Town redevelopment group Regenesis, said: “Finding anybody to regenerate Court Street will be very difficult if there is a sex club there. The Creative Arches have had difficulty letting space. I wonder why.”

And the Rev Christopher Wilson, speaking on behalf of All Saints’ church and Leamington Churches Together, said: “Regeneration is about building confidence in the community. That means removing fear and the perception of fear for people bringing up their children in a healthy environment.

“Asking people to amend where they park and walk clearly undermines confidence. The opening hours of other premises are totally irrelevant. The salient issue is proximity.”

Leamington: The Las Vegas of the Midlands!

Leamington nightclub gets strip club licence



CAMPAIGNERS who were opposed to a Leamington nightclub getting a licence to run as a strip club have said they are “extremely disappointed” with the decision.

Shades nightclub in High Street, Leamington was twice refused a licence to become a ‘sexual entertainment venue’ by Warwick District Council because members felt it would have a negative effect on the area.

However this week – a year after its first refusal – committee members granted the licence.

This was despite a barrage of complaints once again from residents, religious leaders and members of the Say No to Strip Clubs in Warwick District campaign group who collected more than 600 signatures on a petition against the application.

The Rev Christopher Wilson from All Saints’ Church in Victoria Terrace, Leamington and spokesman for the group, said: “We are extremely disappointed that a sex establishment licence was granted to Shades despite clear and reasoned opposition.

“It is a slap in the face for Leamington in general and for the old town in particular, weighing against the aspirations and efforts of local people who have worked so hard to achieve Mary Portas funding for regeneration.

“It is also an affront to democracy, as councillors from elsewhere in the District overrode the objections of local people and their elected representatives.

The club was given permission by the committee to open the strip club from 11pm until 4am at weekends.

Leamington lap dance club fight goes to High Court



A Warwickshire lap dancing club is the subject of a judicial review following a campaign to have it closed down.

A decision by Warwick District Council to grant Shades Gentlemen’s Club in Leamington a sex entertainment licence last year will now be looked at again by a High Court judge in June.

It comes after a hearing in Birmingham last month found the council’s decision may have been flawed.

A coalition of groups has called for the licence at the nightclub in High Street, Old Town, to be revoked.

Campaigners include the Green Party, the nearby Lord Krishna Temple and All Saints’ Church in Victoria Terrace.

The Say No To Strip Clubs in Warwick and Leamington campaign gathered more than 600 signatures for a petition opposing the original licence application.

Jonathan Chilvers, spokesman for the Green Party in Warwick and Leamington, said: “This is part of a wider campaign to kick sex clubs out of Warwick District. We’re delighted with the outcome of the High Court hearing.

“We want people to feel safe coming into south Leamington. I have two young daughters and I don’t want to be walking them to the station past a sex club.”

The dispute came about after government changes required all sex entertainment venues to re-apply for a new licence. Local authorities were given powers to prevent any from operating within its boundary.

Warwick District Council twice refused a licence for Shades but when the club applied for the third time a licence was granted.

Vik Tara, of the Hindu Temple Committee, said: “We are very unhappy about the decision to have a sex club in the neighbourhood. We want Leamington to feel safe for everyone. The temple functions on a great many days of the year, and the people coming to worship feel very threatened by having sexually aroused men coming out of the club.”

The Hindu Association has contributed to the costs of applying to the High Court and is continuing to gather funds to pay costs.

Councillor Michael Coker, Warwick District Council’s cabinet member for community protection, said: “These matters will be considered at a two-day hearing in June and it would be inappropriate to comment further until after the conclusion.”

Rob Ransford, the owner of Shades, insisted it has done nothing wrong.

He said: “This just seems to be an ongoing thing with certain parties but we are a legitimate business and they just want to take our livelihoods away from us.

“We’ve had no objections from police or environmental protection. We’re going to fight this all the way.”

Anger after renewal of club’s sexual entertainment licence



Objectors have vowed to fight on against an Old Town strip club despite it being granted a sexual entertainment licence for another year.

It was granted despite more than 300 objections and fears aired that “sexually aroused men” would accost women in the area.

The sexual entertainments licence for Shades Gentleman’s Club, on the corner of High Street and Wise Street, was granted by Warwick District Councillors on Tuesday.

It came despite claims that it would harm the regeneration of Old Town and “reinforce the image of a shady, run-down area”, was inappropriate for a residential area and because of its closeness to a Hindu temple.

Of the 10 councillors who judged the application, five Conservatives approved it, with Tory chairman George Illingworth using his casting vote.

Cllr Illingworth said there was no evidence to support claims made against the club.

Alan Wilkinson, a Labour district councillor for the area said he was “disgusted and angry” at the decision.

He said: “I can’t get my head around how five Conservative councillors who are not Leamington councillors made this decision in the face of so much opposition from those who live and work in the area.

“It’s disappointing that the Hindu temple appears not to have been taken into account, but the fight goes on”

Of the 300 objections, 100 came from worshippers at the nearby Shree Krishna Temple and the Hindu Religious Association hired a barrister to fight their case.

Vik Tara, of the temple’s executive committee, said the decision was a “slap in the face”, not only for worshippers, but those who live and work in the area.

He said: “We have spent thousands over the last three years fighting this – but the cost will not put us off. We will be back next year.

“It will be on the same grounds and more objections. Does it require 3,000 objections and widening the campaign further?

“It would be interesting to see what would happen if it was a Conservative ward or in anyone of their wards.”

At the hearing, solicitor Ian Besant, representing owners Robert and Lisa Ransford, said: “We have had no information about anyone being harassed or assaulted by a Shades customer. This is a well run club.”

He said the club attracted a mature crowd, a large number of couples and up to 15 per cent of the clientele were women.

Mr Besant said there was no touching of the dancers or nudity and that the women included a social worker, trainee doctor and care workers.

He rejected claims that it was a predominantly residential area and said there had been no objections from people living in Wise Street

Brunswick ward Green Party county councillor Jonathon Chilvers pleaded with the licensing panel to reject it, saying it would harm Old Town’s regeneration. He said: “We are not giving up the fight. Having a sex club in south Leamington is not the way forward.”