Chinawhite decision as councillors offer reprieve over closed-down Newcastle nightclub

Councillors have granted a reprieve to the owners of a closed-down Newcastle nightclub – deciding not to strip it of its licence, despite a plea from police.

The city’s Chinawhite club has been shut since March and owners Lykos Leisure are seeking a new buyer for the site, at the former Assembly Rooms. That came amid a dispute with Tyneside authorities over a series of incidents in and around the Fenkle Street club since its opening in late 2021, including alleged fights, thefts, and druggings.

While the venue has now been shut for more than four months and its owners have said they have no intention of reopening it, there was still the prospect of it having its licence revoked over what was labelled “poor management” of the premises. However, a panel of councillors has deemed that punitive measure “disproportionate” and said that the self-imposed cessation of trade had been a “significant response” to the major concerns about Chinawhite’s operation.

• Read More: Newcastle nightclub takeover talks underway after venue shut down amid 'poor management' claims

• Keep up to date with all the latest local news from Newcastle with our free newsletter

It means that, in a boost for Lykos Leisure’s attempt to offload the club, a new operator would not be forced to start from scratch when seeking a licence to return the venue to use. Instead, the city council’s licensing sub-committee has imposed a condition requiring a future operator to set out what steps it would take to avoid a repeat of the past problems before it can be reopened.

That course of action had been supported by council licensing boss Jonathan Bryce at a hearing last week. Mr Bryce had been hugely critical of Chinawhite, accusing bosses of “poor management” and a lack of supervisory control, as well as a “crude” marketing approach which “exacerbated the poor and distasteful operating style of the premises”.

However, argued that the club was “very much capable” of being reopened under “suitable and sustainable” management. Barrister Charles Holland, representing Lykos Leisure, had argued in favour of retaining the licence in the hope of a new operator taking it over and had earlier revealed that early talks were being held with a potential buyer.

Northumbria Police solicitor Hayley Hebb, by contrast, wanted to see the licence stripped. She said that the long list of incidents at Chinawhite were a serious matter that had not been given a “real examination” to determine what went wrong, as a result of the club being shut down and put up for sale.

Ms Hebb argued that the committee would be taking “almost a shot in the dark” by waiting for a new owner to come in and resolve the issues. While there is technically nothing to prevent Lykos Leisure from seeking to relaunch Chinawhite itself if it cannot find a buyer, the committee said in a statement released on Monday that such an outcome was “highly unlikely”.

They said: “At the outset of our deliberations, we considered whether revocation would be an appropriate response in the present circumstances. We unanimously determined that revocation would be a disproportionate response in the current circumstances. The premises has been closed for three months. Even in the event of a swift sale and transfer application this week – a variation application would not be heard for at least two months. This is a lengthy period of closure.”

The committee added: “It seemed to be accepted that Lykos Leisure Ltd, although not directly challenging or contesting the evidence, has none-the-less accepted the difficulty of its position and the seriousness of the concerns raised by the review application and representations in support. The closure of the premises, the termination of trade and the cessation of the Chinawhite operation is a significant response to the review application.”

Evidence has been presented highlighting dozens of episodes since January 2022 that included assaults, thefts, alleged spikings and druggings, and a non-fatal strangulation at Chinawhite. There were also complaints of illegal vapes being sold in the club’s toilets, social media adverts for the club featuring scantily-clad women, and news cuttings about incidents such as a fight in which Newcastle United footballer Jamaal Lascelles and his younger brother were allegedly attacked after having left Chinawhite.