A VILLAGE pub has been granted extended opening hours despite objections from residents.

The Crown and Liver in Hawarden can now open until 2am on Friday and Saturday nights, but more than 25 elderly residents who live in nearby sheltered accommodation at Prince William Court and Woodside Close said they had concerns about noise.

But an application for music to be played at the site until 2am was turned down during the Flintshire Council licensing sub-committee meeting.

Speaking on behalf of the residents councillor George Hardcastle said he was disappointed with the outcome.

He said: “We are not happy. But at the end of the day at least the music will stop at 1am. We wanted it refused on the grounds of the proximity of the sheltered accommodation.

“We are not living in the Costa del Sol, we are living in the UK. We have got a little village and within a two-mile radius we have seven pubs.

“Altogether there are 60 sheltered residences there. It is a good pub and I do sympathise.”

North Wales Police said there had been a decrease in anti-social behaviour since the current owners took over and the introduction of door staff had helped.

Licensee, Stuart Robinson said: “I feel I am a responsible licensee. We have had no incidents in the last two years. We do not see an issue with this extra hour.”

Members of the committee decided to grant the extra opening hours under the condition no music was played after 1am and that door staff are required on nights when the pub is open late.

Mr Robinson said the pub acts responsibly, uses ‘challenge 21’ and bar staff call taxis for customers to reduce noise outside the pub.

New double glazing has also been installed in a bid to cut noise.

The pub’s co-owner Julian Lloyd Roberts said the complaints were only a small percentage of the number of residents who live nearby.

Cllr Helen Brown said she supported local business but said longer opening hours could lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour.

She said: “There are many, many concerns not just from the sheltered
accommodation. People are very nervous about the application.

“The pub is surrounded by sheltered housing. There is an outside area at the rear of the pub and I would suggest that this would suffer from noise nuisance.”

Committee chairman, Cllr Bernie Aldridge, said the decision was a compromise.