City centre bar's licence revoked after man stabbed

A man in his 30s who was stabbed in Skybar has been discharged from hospital since the incident

A Nottingham bar where a man was stabbed has had its licence revoked by councillors.

Skybar, based in The Cornerhouse, has been at the centre of several issues in recent months – with a reported 46 incidents taking place in the past two years.

The venue was temporarily closed by police last month after a man in his 30s was stabbed on 6 July, with three people being charged in relation to the incident.

On Tuesday, Nottingham City Councillors revoked the bar's licence, with officers saying they had received "numerous complaints" from residents and businesses.

The licence holder surrendered the bar’s licence prior to the meeting, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

However, the council’s licensing panel meeting still went ahead as surrendering a licence only means it has lapsed.

In Tuesday's meeting, Steve Thorpe, pollution control officer at the council, said: “There have been numerous complaints from residents as well as other premises in the area.

“Some have lost business because they couldn’t enjoy the meal or whatever they were doing.”

Most of the meeting was held behind closed doors because of the active criminal investigation.

However, the public discussion heard contact with the venue’s operators has been difficult for the council, with numerous failed attempts concerning the bar’s noise levels.

Mr Thorpe added: “It’s very rare we have to work with somebody for this length of time without any contact whatsoever. We’ve written several times with warning letters.

“We can’t work with an absent director or any of the managers, all of which were contacted by post, none of which got back to us, so you’re basically waiting for the next complaint to come through.

“I had no confidence in working with somebody you’ve never seen, a manager that you haven’t seen, so there’s nothing we could do further.”

When the meeting became public again, the panel confirmed it had reviewed CCTV images, a police bundle and concerns from the fire service.

The loss of licence is not immediate, because the bar’s operator will now be allowed to appeal the decision.

This must be done within the next 21 days under licensing laws.

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