Met Police block Tooting shop's bid to sell alcohol until 2am

KK Convenience Store on Tooting High Street has been refused police support for its application to extend alcohol sales until 2am. The Met Police and Wandsworth Council’s licensing team argued the change would worsen anti-social behaviour in an area already struggling with alcohol-related crime.

The shop, at 124 Tooting High Street, sits within the Tooting Broadway Cumulative Impact Zone. Wandsworth Council designates these zones to limit new alcohol licences where saturation is already causing problems. PC Belinda Loizou, the Met’s licensing officer, told the council’s licensing sub-committee on 19 August that extending hours would likely increase violence and disorder.

Police cite rising crime in Tooting Broadway

PC Loizou said: "Tooting Broadway continues to experience significant levels of violence and anti-social behaviour and the police data shows rising crimes, and the council's policy also identifies that late-night alcohol availability and off-licences do contribute to these problems." She presented evidence linking off-licence sales to local crime spikes.

Russ Stevens, Wandsworth Council’s principal licensing officer, supported the police objection. He said the area was already saturated with alcohol sellers and that any increase in availability would worsen existing issues. Stevens told the committee: "It will increase the amount of alcohol that is available in that area and there will be an increase in anti-social behaviour and crime."

Shop owners propose conditions to ease concerns

The shop’s owners, Kavikumar Paramasivam and Karthick Siva Subramanian, argued the extension would help their business. They proposed conditions to address concerns, including a ban on selling high-strength alcohol and single cans. Subramanian said the shop already employed a staff member as security and would refuse sales to intoxicated customers.

Subramanian suggested a compromise: extending hours only until midnight instead of 2am. He told the committee the shop had no history of licensing breaches and would comply with any conditions set. The committee did not indicate whether it would accept the reduced hours during the hearing.

Decision expected within days

Wandsworth Council’s licensing sub-committee will publish its decision on the application in the coming days. If refused, KK Convenience Store will retain its current licence, which permits alcohol sales until 11pm. The council has not set a date for the announcement but said it would be made public as soon as possible.