A COUNCILLOR has warned that the number of late night businesses on one of Bradford's busiest streets is making residents' lives a misery.

Councillor Aneela Ahmed (Lab, City) told members of a licensing committee that the late openings of businesses on Great Horton Road meant residents of the neighbouring roads often struggled to get to sleep.

She believes that with there being so many homes in the area, businesses should ideally open no later than midnight. However, some open as late as 4am, attracting crowds of customers to the area in the small hours of the morning.

She raised the problems residents faced at a meeting of Bradford Council's District Licensing Panel on Thursday.

The panel had met to decide on an application for a late night licence for a burger bar, Smashd, at 364 Great Horton Road. If approved, it would allow the business to open until 3.30am on weekends, and 2.30am on weekdays.

Applicant Qazi Shamael Iqbal told members they were a new, independent business, and needed the late opening hours because several other businesses in the area have similar opening times.

Bradford Council granted planning permission for the unit to be converted from a shop to a cafe last year, with one condition being it had to shut at 11pm.

When the business opened it stayed open past this closing time, and Bradford Council informed them if they were to keep opening late they would require a licence to serve late night refreshment.

A number of people had objected to the late licence application, including Cllr Ahmed, Councillor Nazam Azam (Lab, City) four residents and the Council's Bradford West Ward officer, all raising concerns that another late opening business would add to the problems residents faced.

A Mrs Nizami, representing Mr Iqbal, said there were nine other businesses within a mile radius that stayed open until the early hours, and an extra one would not make much of a difference for residents.

Most late night business would be via services like Uber Eats, rather than people visiting the business themselves, the panel was told.

She said the business owners were very socially conscious, and would do all they could to clear any litter created by customers.

Richard Winter, a legal officer at the Council, questioned part of the application that said children under 12 would not be allowed in without an adult late at night. He argued that it would be unlikely that a child would be out so late at night. Mrs Nizami said: "People do take children out late at night, it does happen."

Mr Iqbal added: "We're living in the 21st Century. things are very different from how they used to be."

Cllr Ahmed said she supported new business, but added: "It can't happen to the detriment of local residents. A lot of the people who live in this area see it as their forever home, and they'll only leave their homes in a casket.

"The area is so busy that residents find life really difficult in the night time. There are young children living in the area who have school the next day. There are older people who have lived here for 60 plus years hoping for a quiet life.

"Allowing this business to open to 3.30am means an extra four and a half hours of business - extra noise, extra waste left behind."

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She said the Council sent litter pickers to the street daily, and some businesses did have staff clear litter from the area, but still bins were regularly overflowing and litter dumped in streets.

Cllr Ahmed added: "The applicants can control what's going to happen on the main road. They can't tell every driver to turn down their music or slam their doors."

She said she worked on projects during Eid and other busy periods, when the street was particularly busy, with families enjoying the numerous food businesses that open late into the night.

Cllr Ahmed told the panel: "The problem is Great Horton Road becomes an attraction for people who have loud cars and drive up and down the road to show them off.

"In the Eid project we shut the road so people can only come up one way. We try to get more people to walk to businesses rather than come in cars.

"When we do this it works, we see young ladies that wouldn't previously have felt comfortable visiting these premises due to the traffic and all the cars. They're now getting out and spending money at local businesses."

Cllr Ahmed was asked what she felt should be the closing time for businesses based on the street. She replied: "I think midnight is a reasonable time for a cut off. You're in an environment where there are lots of residential properties around you At the end of the day, residents have to get up to go to work the next day. Some of them can't get to sleep until 4am because of the noise.

"I understand businesses need to trade, but we don't want people kept up until 3, 4, 5am."

She pointed out that some of the businesses with late openings in the area seemed to be operating beyond their licensed hours, and that the Council was investigating some businesses.

The applicants were told that even if they did get a licence to open later, their planning permission only allowed the business to open until 11pm. They would need to apply for an amended planning permission if they were to legally open past 11pm.

After some deliberation the committee voted to grant a late license, but only until 2am.