Tooting street labelled ‘violence hotspot’ as Met Police oppose convenience store’s 2am plan

The shop’s owners said extending its alcohol hours would help the business

The Met Police have opposed a South London convenience shop’s plan to sell alcohol until 2am over concerns it will add to anti-social behaviour and violence in the area.

KK Convenience Store, in Tooting, applied to extend the hours it can sell alcohol from up to 11pm to 2am every day.

But the Met Police and Wandsworth Council’s environmental services and licensing officers opposed the application as the shop, on Tooting High Street, is in the Tooting Broadway Cumulative Impact Zone (CIZ), where applications should be refused if they are deemed likely to add to problems in the area.

PC Belinda Loizou, Met Police licensing officer, told the council’s licensing hearing last night (August 19) that extending the shop’s alcohol hours to 2am would likely add to anti-social behaviour and crime in the area.

PC Loizou said: “Tooting Broadway continues to experience significant levels of violence and anti-social behaviour and the police data shows rising crimes, and the council’s policy also identifies that late-night alcohol availability and off-licences do contribute to these problems.”

Russ Stevens, Wandsworth’s principal licensing officer, added: “It’s an area already deemed to be saturated with alcohol sellers and any premises, no matter how well run… if there’s more alcohol being supplied in a cumulative impact area, then it will have a negative impact.

“It will increase the amount of alcohol that is available in that area and there will be an increase in anti-social behaviour and crime and problems, issues, that are already reported in this area associated with alcohol.”

Business owners Kavikumar Paramasivam and Karthick Siva Subramanian told the hearing extending the hours would help the business, which would follow all conditions on the licence to address any concerns.

Proposed conditions include restricting the sale of high-strength alcohol and a ban on selling single cans.

Karthick said the shop always had a member of staff acting as security and it would not sell alcohol to anybody who was too drunk. He suggested the committee could extend the alcohol hours until midnight rather than 2am, if it preferred.

The committee’s decision on the application will be published in the coming days.

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