Council grants The Village Bakery and Café alcohol licence

The Village Bakery and Café lies on the A371 Bath Street in the heart of Cheddar, opposite the Bath Arms public house.

Business owners Sean Battles and Jacqueline Lewis drew the ire of several local residents in applying for a licence to sell alcohol into the evenings, allowing them to hold cheese and wine evenings and charcuterie events with live or recorded music.

Despite locals concerns’ about noise and antisocial behaviour, Somerset Council has granted the new licence, believing it will boost the local economy.

The council’s licensing sub-committee north (which handles contentious licensing issues in the former Sedgemoor area) met in Bridgwater to discuss the proposals on November 20.

Under the new licence, the bakery and café will be able to sell alcohol for consumption on the premise between noon and 10pm every day (except until 6pm on Sundays), with 28 covers being provided in the outside courtyard during the summer months.

Recorded music will be played on the premises during these hours, but no music will be played or broadcast outdoors while the outside seating is in operation.

Mr Battles said: “We arrived ten years ago in Cheddar and the village was broken – it was two shops, a charity and an insurance place.

“We’ve worked really hard to keep the village alive. To keep this business viable, we need additional revenue streams, such as selling craft ale to people staying on the camp-sites in the summer.”

The bakery lies very close to both the village’s main supermarket and the southern terminus of the Strawberry Line active travel route, which provides car-free transport from Axbridge and the neighbouring villages near the Mendip Hills national landscape (formerly area of outstanding natural beauty, or AONB).

Estelle Cobb, who lives on Union Street, was one of several residents who raised issues about the planned licence, arguing it would damage her and other locals’ quality of life.

In a statement published before the hearing, she said: “My balcony, which I sit out on, overlooks the small car park [near the bakery].

“I accept that it is already subject to the noise of the customers and vehicles from the Bath Arms , but I am opposed to what will be an increase in noise from customers for both premises, when I have a right to enjoy peace and quiet in my home without excessive disturbance from others.

“This is also applicable to the front of the flat which, when the windows are open in good weather, will have the disturbance from the café and an increase of footfall in the area for myself and other residents around the café, causing late-night disturbance.”

Mia Taylor – whose address has not been made public – added: “There is an existing pub which is managed by the same company, located directly across the road.

“This popular establishment already caters to the community’s need for a place to consume alcohol. Could the proposed events not be hosted at their existing licensed establishment?”

Avon and Somerset Constabulary agreed a series of conditions with the business owners before the hearing took place, meaning that they raised no formal objection to the licence.

After a brief debate in confidential session, the panel voted to grant the new licence.

Councillor Marcus Kravis (who represents the Dunster division) said: “The hours requested were not excessive and less than the average pub. The hours requested were the maximum permitted and were unlikely to be utilised all year round.

“in order to further promote the licensing objectives, no recorded music is to be played in the courtyard.

“At least once a week between 6pm and 10pm, the owners must monitor and record the internal sound levels by way of a decibel meter. Such records will be retained for 12 months and made available to our licensing officers on demand.”

The council’s planning officers will make a decision early in the new year on plans for a new car park on the opposite side of Bath Street.