Weston-super-Mare nightclub could lose licence

The nightclub was opened in 2021

Police want a nightclub to be stripped of its licence after reports of sexual assault and underage drinking there.

Club Freelove, which opened on Weston-super-Mare Boulevard in 2021, had also seen incidents of organised crime, Avon and Somerset Police said.

Bosses at the nightclub said they planned to create a mocktail bar and open in the daytime to give free lunches to elderly people.

The issue will be decided at a North Somerset Council hearing next week.

Police said the club was booked for an 18th birthday party last year which included guests under the age of 18.

In a witness statement, the parent who booked the venue said that despite being told under 18s would be identified with armbands and not sold alcohol, no armbands were handed out and alcohol was sold without ages being checked.

One guest said they went into the toilet and found a bouncer having sex, the parent added.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, club staff maintained age checks were carried out at the time.

Police want the club's licence to be stripped after its upcoming review

A neighbourhood sergeant with Avon and Somerset Police said: "[The person running the club] stated she did not have a process that she used to employ people and she would employ people as she felt sorry for them and she hoped she could 'change' them and wanted to be a positive influence on others.

"She agreed this was not the best way to run her venue."

The force also alleged there was a sexual assault and incidents linked to organised crime at the club.

Following a meeting with Police Licensing in November 2022, the designated premises supervisor was removed.

The North Somerset Council licensing committee hearing will take place on 12 January.

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