𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Pubgoers in a leafy London suburb have forced a Labour-run council to U-turn on a ban on riverside drinking. Hounslow Council ordered three pubs in Chiswick to remove all seating on the river path outside their venues pending an investigation last month.

But following a major backlash from publicans, the local authority has changed its stance, forming an agreement with the boozers for the seating to be returned. The row first broke out when The Bull’s Head applied to renew its street furniture licence, with the council ordering stafff to remove the seating until it was approved.

It then emerged that two other pubs on the stretch, The City Barge and The Bell & Crown, also did not have a licence, risking a removal of all seating along the riverside. The local authority has since bowed to public pressure and come to an arrangement whereby the pubs are allowed to keep the tables and benches while the licensing applications are assessed.

Alastair Hilton, a regular at The Bell & Crown, told The Telegraph: “In the summer you’ve got to make every tenner you can, you’ve got to.

“Every seat that vanishes, it’s another £50, £100. It’s very, very hard to run a business as it is, very hard to run a pub. You can’t have a council coming along and going, well I don’t like this.”

An anonymous woman who has lived in the area for over two decades also described the council’s backtracking as a “victory for freedom and a victory for common sense”.

Meanwhile, Gabriella Giles, Conservative councillor for Chiswick Riverside, criticised the council’s decision to remove the seating, in line with the Highways Act, as an “abuse of power”.

Amy Croft, cabinet member for infrastructure at Hounslow Council, said: “We recognise the important role that riverside pubs play in the local community and appreciate their contribution to the area’s economy and character.

“We are required by law to ensure that any outdoor seating and structures placed on the public highway or riverside towpath have the appropriate permissions in place and do not obstruct access for pedestrians, wheelchair users, people with pushchairs or emergency services.

“Following inquiries regarding outdoor furniture and installations at a number of premises on Strand-on-the-Green, officers reviewed the relevant permissions and licence arrangements.

“Where tables, chairs, shelving or other removable furniture are placed on the public highway, businesses are required to hold a pavement licence.”