Wolverhampton Venue’s Licence Revoked Over Safety Breaches

The operating licence for an entertainment venue in Wolverhampton has been withdrawn following allegations that it endangered the public by disregarding safety protocols. Astoria, located on Skinner Street, violated a crucial condition of its licence by consistently failing to inform West Midlands Police before significant events. Police indicated that this breach led to disturbances at the venue, including instances where officers had to attend equipped with tasers. The BBC had previously sought a comment from the establishment. Furthermore, police stated that the venue did not provide officers with CCTV footage in a timely manner. The 700-capacity venue, which commenced operations last year, has hosted events such as Sky Sports boxing, Bongo’s Bingo, and Euro 2024 games. The force asserted that Astoria’s management was “undermining people’s safety,” despite having received multiple reminders. The City of Wolverhampton Council’s licensing department concurred with West Midlands Police, stating that the venue had demonstrated “total disregard” for the stipulations of its licence and was jeopardizing public safety. A hearing revealed that the venue had ignored calls and emails from licensing officers. Councillor Zee Russell, chair of the council’s licensing committee, commented: “I think they are very lucky that they haven’t had a serious incident there.” She further added that the venue’s owners exhibited “no thought for anybody but the till.” The licensing committee was informed that the venue continued to advertise events despite being aware of the requirement to notify police. The West Midlands Fire Service reported that the owners had “failed on numerous occasions” to complete fire safety checks, and a checklist of necessary work to be finalized before the venue could open to the public was never completed. The fire service also noted that building regulations had not been officially approved since the structure was converted from a bingo hall into an events venue in 2008. This report was compiled by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, an entity that covers local authorities and various public service bodies. Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.