Stafford pub landlord loses his licence as supervisor
A landlord who ran a pub 'in an appalling fashion' must find a new manager after his licence to supervise the venue was revoked.
A hearing was told of a catalogue of problems at the Bird in Hand in Stafford, including a police sting in which a 15-year-old girl was sold two bottles of cider.
Andrew Woodward had his licence as a designated premises supervisor revoked and new management must be brought in under one of a number of conditions on the Bird in Hand's continued trading.
The Victoria Square premises was reported to licensing chiefs after a member of staff was caught serving two bottles of cider to the girl during a police compliance test in July.
The licensing sub-committee at Stafford Borough Council was told of a string of drink and disorder problems that had taken place at the premises. The council had also previously served a noise abatement notice on the pub after numerous complaints of loud music from nearby residents.
The 15-year-old girl had gone into the pub as part of a police and trading standards operation to test whether pubs were selling alcohol to underage customers. She was served by a member of bar staff who said he thought the girl looked over 21 – but had been caught 'off guard'.
Nobody from the Bird in Hand attended the licensing hearing. Committee chairman Councillor John Francis said: "This is such a serious case. Serving young people is not good enough. These premises are seriously badly managed with a management who will not engage with this authority."
Pc David Evans, of Staffordshire Police, said officers had used a volunteer to buy alcohol. "She was selected because she clearly looks under 18 years old," he told the committee. He added: "These premises are causing us some concern. It is being run in an appalling fashion."
The new conditions include increased training of staff and proper operation of the CCTV system. Head of Staffordshire Police's licensing unit, Inspector Jared White, said that while his officers had not requested that the licensee lose his supervising role, he was happy with the outcome of the meeting.
"From a police perspective we're very pleased," he said.
