Chadwell Heath banqueting suite facing closure after latest planning bid rejected by Redbridge Council
PUBLISHED: 07:00 07 November 2019
Mayfair Venue, Chadwell Heath. Picture: Ken Mears
Archant
A Chadwell Heath banqueting suite which has been operating without planning permission for the past four years has failed in its most recent application to officially change its use and now faces closure as early as this December.
Mayfair Venue, in High Road, has been operating as a venue for weddings and events, despite only having planning permission to operate as a bingo hall.
On September 11 this year, the venue applied to formally change its certified use to a wedding and events venue, prompting a number of complaints from nearby residents, ward councillors and even Ilford South MP Mike Gapes.
On Tuesday, November 5, Redbridge Council confirmed that application had been unsuccessful.
Redbridge Council's planning department said the new application had failed to demonstrate how the premises would manage anti-social behaviour late at night and early in the morning "with regards to noise, disturbance and vehicular activity".
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It had also failed to show that the change of use would not have a negative impact on nearby roads, or that there was sufficient "local need" for a wedding venue, council planning officers added.
The officers' statement concludes: "The proposal would be prejudicial to the safe and efficient operation of the highway network and prejudicial to the amenity of the nearby residents and wider surrounding area and therefore cannot be considered to satisfy the requirements of Policies LP10, LP17, LP23, LP24 and LP26 of the Local Plan."
The venue, which opened in 2015, applied for permission to change its use in 2017 but was refused, with Redbridge Council citing similar concerns to those raised by this application.
In June 2018, Redbridge Council issued an enforcement notice on the property to "cease the unauthorised use of the premises as a banqueting hall/venue for hire" as it was "considered to be having a negative impact on the amenity of the surrounding residences as a result of noise, disturbance, anti-social behaviour and parking issues".
Mayfair Venue appealed this notice, but inspectors concluded that the use of the premises as a venue available for hire is a breach in planning regulation and the enforcement notice has been upheld.
The owners must stop using it as a banqueting suite by December 17, the Planning Inspectorate said.
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