|
From the https://sevenoaksonline.co.uk
22 October 2026.
The review was listed for a licensing sub-committee hearing at
10.30am on Wednesday 21 October. When we reread the council's
meeting page on 22 October it carried no decision notice or minutes
yet. We will add the outcome here when the council publishes it. Our
report of the case as it went to the hearing follows.
The Westerham Club on Fullers Hill faced a review of its club
premises certificate this week. A neighbour asked for the review,
citing months of noise and drinking outside homes in Duncan’s Yard.
A council licensing sub-committee was listed to hear the case at
10.30am on Wednesday 21 October. (Sevenoaks District Council,
Licensing Hearing, 21 October 2026)
The club’s own reply was published with the papers. It apologises,
and says a new committee is putting things right.
What the neighbour says.
The review was applied for on 1 September by a resident living
next to the club. It rests on one licensing objective, the
prevention of public nuisance.
The resident’s statement says they do not want the club closed,
and calls it “a long-established community facility”. They ask the
council to make sure the club keeps to the conditions already on its
certificate.
Their incident log runs from April to August 2026. The complaints
include:
customers drinking, shouting and sitting on walls and doorsteps
outside neighbouring homes
football in Duncan’s Yard, and a damaged flower bed
loud recorded music on 27 June, with the club’s doors and windows
left open
an argument outside homes at 2.50am on 12 April
a notice asking customers to leave quietly that went up for only one
day
Four neighbours made representations. Three arrived after the
consultation closed on 29 September. The council accepted them
because its public portal had shown the wrong closing date, 1
October.
What the club says.
The club’s letter to the committee says it is “disappointed” with
how earlier complaints were handled, and blames poor liaison under
previous management. A new committee was elected at an emergency
general meeting on 14 August.
It says 39 of the 43 complaint entries fell during this summer’s
heatwave, when doors and windows were open. It also says 21 came
during the World Cup. It calls both “not an excuse”.
The club lists what it has done or plans to do:
notices telling members and guests not to sit on neighbours’
property, to keep doors closed and to leave quietly
bar staff and committee told to move people on after hours
a signing-in book again, with two guests per member at most
CCTV repaired in the week of 7 September, after being out of action
for some time
sound checks at music events, and asking for special event licences
when bands bring a following
beer and waste collections moved to no earlier than 8am
an offer for a residents’ representative to sit in on committee
meetings
The club says it has been going for over 100 years and counts
Winston Churchill among past members. It warns that it “will NOT
survive without a license and some events to raise funds”.
What the council can do.
None of the council’s responsible authorities objected.
Environmental Protection, the fire service, Trading Standards and
others all said they had no comment.
The sub-committee can:
change the conditions on the certificate
remove a licensable activity
suspend the certificate for up to three months
withdraw it
Any decision can be appealed to the magistrates’ court within 21
days, and does not take effect until then.
What it means for residents.
The hearing was listed in public in the Council Chamber on Argyle
Road. All the papers are on the council’s meeting page. We will
report the decision when it is published.
A second pub review, of the Rising Sun at Twitton, follows on 27
October. New licence applications across the district are in our
weekly planning and licensing roundups. |
