Sheffield convenience store caught selling alcohol and vapes under-age wins bid to keep licence
A Sheffield convenience store has won its fight to keep its off licence sales after being caught selling vapes and alcohol to under-age customers.
Best One on Southey Green Road, Southey Green was twice caught out last year by test purchases made by under-age police cadets on behalf of South Yorkshire Police.
Sheffield City Council’s licensing sub-committee heard today (March 9) from licensee Harminder Bains that missed email communications between him and the licensing authorities meant that he hadn’t undertaken the required improvements to recording systems and staff training.
Mr Bains said: “I am very sorry and quite mortified with the test purchases.”
He said that a big problem with shoplifting had distracted staff from challenging customers to prove they were old enough to buy vapes or alcohol.
Following a meeting with staff, Mr Bains agreed to take some more expensive meat products such as steak and chicken off sale and other goods are only on display in limited numbers.
Safeguarding
“Whatever I could do to help staff, I’m prepared to do,” he said.
All staff have now done safeguarding training, the CCTV system has been updated and the Challenge 25 scheme is being operated and incidents recorded by staff.
Mr Bains apologised for the shortcomings and also for the distress caused to his family.
“I think, for the sake of an E on my email address, this could all have been resolved early on,” Mr Bains said.
After hearing from Mr Bains, representatives of the police, trading standards and child safeguarding teams said they remained unconvinced that the problems had been fully resolved.
They told the hearing that Mr Bains should have followed up when he didn’t receive the expected emails. He had also received visits and letters.
Conditions
Councillors decided to allow the licence to continue with added conditions outlined by an action plan, plus any additional conditions that had been put forward by police.
Committee chair Coun David Barker said that there was evidence that Mr Bains had been a good licensee in the past and hoped that would now continue to be the case.
He said that any future breaches of the licence conditions would bring Mr Bains back before the committee, which would then take a very different attitude.