Concerns over late-night opening hours for a new Popeyes restaurant in Kingston have been raised by residents and the police, who fear it could exacerbate existing issues with crime, disorder, and public nuisance.
A Licensing Sub-Committee of Kingston upon Thames Council met on Tuesday 29 September 2026 to consider an application for a new premises licence for Popeyes, located at 65-67 Clarence Street. The applicant sought permission for late-night refreshments daily from 23:00 to 05:00, with the premises closing to the public at 01:00 from Sunday to Wednesday and 02:00 from Thursday to Saturday, while continuing a delivery service until 05:00.
The Metropolitan Police objected to the application, citing concerns that it would undermine the licensing objectives of preventing crime and disorder, public nuisance, and public safety. Police Sergeant Jeremy Weston stated that Kingston Town Centre already experiences significant crime and disorder associated with the night-time economy. The police regularly respond to incidents including violence, public order offences, anti-social behaviour, criminal damage, theft, alcohol-related disorder, and vulnerability-related concerns during the late-night and early-morning periods. The police fear that an additional late-night refreshment venue would exacerbate these issues. He also expressed concerns about managing delivery operations from the pedestrianised Clarence Street.
John Sibson, the Council's Lead Officer for Pollution Control, also raised concerns about public nuisance, highlighting that Clarence Street is a pedestrianised area with nearby residential properties. He warned that late delivery hours could disturb residents due to vehicle noise and engine sounds, recommending restrictions on delivery times.
Local resident Saffron Sassaroni echoed these concerns, detailing issues with noise and litter from delivery drivers already using a rear access point. She expressed fears that extending these operations until 05:00 would significantly impact residents' sleep and noted a lack of CCTV and lighting in the rear area, which could lead to anti-social behaviour. Regarding the rear access area, she stated, there is no CCTV, there is no lights, and even towards, there is like a, um, uh, sort of a dead zone, a black, a black zone where there is no, um, supervision really.
The applicant's representative, Mark Browning, offered to reduce the proposed hours for late-night refreshment to midnight daily, with delivery operations ceasing at 01:00 on Fridays and Saturdays. Popeyes proposed several measures to manage delivery drivers and mitigate noise and litter concerns:
- Directing delivery drivers to the front of the premises after 22:00.
- Arranging for appropriate bin collection times.
- Displaying clear and legible notices at all entrances/exits requesting delivery drivers not to loiter unnecessarily and to leave in a quiet and orderly manner.
- Ensuring delivery drivers are managed by staff to prevent them from causing a nuisance.
- Ensuring that deliveries are only made to residential or business addresses and not to open public spaces.
- Staff ensuring that the front of the premises is swept and kept clean.
- Staff ensuring that patrons do not congregate outside the restaurant.
- Implementing WAVE Training, Ask Angela, and Child Safeguarding Policies.
The applicant also highlighted existing measures such as CCTV and an incident log, and offered to implement further conditions, including liaising with the police regarding door staff if deemed necessary.
The Metropolitan Police have consistently objected to applications seeking to extend late-night activity within Kingston Town Centre, whether through new licence applications or variations of existing permissions. A representation from the Director of Public Health in 2017 regarding a KFC application on Clarence Street highlighted the epidemic of harm to health of all the public by increasing the chance to eat more fast food
and noted the saturation of fast food places in the area around Eden Street, Clarence Street and Fife Road since in nearly 10 years.
This suggests a history of concerns regarding late-night food establishments and their impact on public health and nuisance in this area.
The committee deliberated on the application, considering all representations. The final decision was to be confirmed by email later that day, with full reasons to follow within five working days. The meeting agenda and public reports pack can be found at Agenda frontsheet Tuesday 29-Sep-2026 09.45 Licensing Sub-Committee and Public reports pack Tuesday 29-Sep-2026 09.45 Licensing Sub-Committee.
