Drug and drink-fuelled kids' disco pub to stay closed

An ambulance was called to Sonny's Bar in September 2023 after reports children were drinking

A pub that hosted a children's disco where teens as young as 13 were found drunk and unconscious, and others were suspected of having taken cocaine and ketamine, will not be allowed to reopen over Easter.

Sonny's Bar and Bentley's nightclub in Towyn, Conwy council, was given a three-month ban at Christmas by the council’s licensing sub-committee.

North Wales Police suspected children had taken drugs at the under-18s party on 22 September, 2023.

The pub operator EJP Entertainment applied unsuccessfully to open temporarily, six days before its suspension is due to end.

“The application for a temporary events notice at Sonny’s Bar, Towyn, has been rejected," a Conwy council spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

North Wales Police licensing officer Aaron Haggas criticised EJP for applying to end the ban early.

He said the pub was attempting to “play clever games” to circumnavigate the ban.

“There is nothing to indicate that this is a separate application, other than an opportunity to try to circumnavigate the suspended licence through nothing more than what can be called kidology,” he said.

“It does bring into question the trust and confidence of the applicant and may well also call into question the action taken by the licensing authority.

“We will be very disappointed should this application be approved," he added.

Representing EJP Entertainment, solicitor Joe Harvey said the pub had put in a range of measures to improve how the pub will be run, including security and licensing courses for staff.

“We would say there has been a lot of effort on our part to try and repair things, and it is disappointing to hear that this is perhaps felt by North Wales Police that that isn’t going as well as what we thought it was going, because we want to put things right,” he said.