A CONVENIENCE store in West Watford, which was forced to stop selling alcohol after a string of out-of-hours sales, as well as to street drinkers and teenagers, has been given a new licence.

The owners of Whippendale Food and Wine, in Whippendell Road, applied to Watford Borough Council for a new licence four times since the original was revoked in June 2010.

These applications were refused on the basis that the previous licence holder failed to prevent crime and disorder, prevent public nuisance, and protect children from harm.

At a meeting of Watford Borough Council’s licensing sub-committee today, Mounisha Srithas, daughter of the family which owns the business, was granted a premises licence in her name, allowing the shop to sell alcohol between 8am and 10pm, Monday to Sunday.

The council argued that the shop should not be given a licence, as it was located in an area which falls under a special policy, known as LP4.

The policy, which is strictly applied, states off-licence applications should be refused, unless the application in question replaces another premises of a similar or comparable size.

The police said under the previous licence, alcohol related anti-social behaviour had been rife, and in a report, Liam Fitzgerald, anti-social behaviour coordinator for the council, said the shop was identified as a major contributory factor.

He also said since the licence was revoked there had been no complaints from the nearby infants school who previously complained of harassment from street drinkers.

Sergeant Marie White detailed how employees at Whippendale Food and Wine had sold alcohol outside of hours, as well as to known street drinkers, people who were already drunk, and to children under the age of 18, on one occasion to a ten-year-old.

She said: "This family are effectively asking for a second chance and I am concerned as to why they should be given one.

"I do not believe there are any conditions which could be considered due to the blatant disregard which have already been proven. They should not be given a second chance."

Leo Charalambides, representing Whippendale Food and Wine, dismissed the shop’s previous record, reminding the committee that they had to consider the new application, rather than treating it as a hearing into the previously revoked licence.

He said: "It is unfortunate the police are effectively saying is that there are no second chances for this family. They have entirely closed their mind to the fact that this family has been rehabilitated.

"In a society which rehabilitates murders, rapists and violent paedophiles it seems strange that we cannot rehabilitates shopkeepers in Watford."

Jan Brown defended the council’s position, saying: "We treat each case on its own merits, but it is absolutely impossible for us to completely exclude what went on before.

"The matters which lead to the previous revocation of the licence were serious matters, despite several warnings. They were quite deliberate flouting of the licence policy."

Mr Charalambides suggested the LP4 policy, which prevents new alcohol licences being granted was "entirely unlawful", adding "what you’ve done, which the secretary of state warns against, is impose a quota with no regard to individual applications."

He referred to the council’s "pool of model conditions", a collection of practices which it would ideally like to see an off-licence adopt, suggesting Whippendale Food and Wine would agree to 20 of these.

They included having the same times for opening and the sale of alcohol, installing CCTV, not selling single cans or bottles, or super strength beers, ciders and lagers.

Sergeant Marie White added: "You can offer as many condition as you like but if they are not adhered to they are useless."

After a short interval, the licensing sub-committee chairman Jan Brown said the application demonstrated how the shop was an exception to policy LP4, and granted the application.