A NEW convenience store created after the takeover of a town’s petrol filling station has been granted a licence to sell alcohol 24 hours a day.

Sterling Petroleum Ltd has taken over Wiveliscombe’s Jones Garage, in West Street, which had been family-run for more than 100 years.

It operates more than 20 petrol station and supermarket sites in England and Wales and plans to open a Morrisons Convenience store on the Wiveliscombe forecourt.

Somerset Council’s licensing sub-committee on Friday (June 19) overruled local objections to the application and granted a licence for alcohol to be sold for consumption off the premises.

Sterling’s licensing consultant Naga Rajesh said the company had ‘very good management practice’ in place and would not sell super-strength alcohol or large boxes of cans or bottles.

Mr Rajesh said: “Local residents are our priority.

“We are not reliant on passing trade, and we do not want to cause residents any trouble.

“We have lots of sites in small villages and we have never had any issues in the last eight years.”

But, Cllr Dave Mansell, who lives close to the garage and represents Wiveliscombe on the council, expressed concern about potential public nuisance caused by selling alcohol overnight.

Cllr Mansell believed the development would have a serious negative impact on local residents.

He said: “Wiveliscombe is a small, rural hill town, after 10 pm or 11 pm all the pubs and shops are shut and there are not people about.

“Most residents will be in bed or going to bed.

“This is not the right time of day or location for seeking to attract a trade of whatever purpose, let alone alcohol sales.

“At nighttime, this area is quiet, and this will be inevitably disturbed, causing nuisance to residents who would be expecting to sleep.

“I am okay with an alcohol licence being issued, it is the overnight trading that is the problem.”

Wiveliscombe town Cllr Peter Berman also raised an issue about the ‘professionalism’ of Sterling regarding changes to the building in the town’s conservation area, which had been started without planning permission.

He said: “Wiveliscombe is a small town of 3,000 people.

“We are not on a main road, and the town is basically empty by midnight.

“We are a little puzzled as to why you want a 24-hour licence to serve alcohol.

“If you want to prevent break-ins, you can keep the shop open, but you do not have to serve alcohol.”

Avon and Somerset Police agreed a series of conditions with Sterling in advance of the licensing hearing, including the installation of a CCTV system and a ban on the sale of any beer or cider of more than 6.5 per cent.

It also required any food and drink sales between 10 pm and 6 am, when only one staff member would be on duty, to be conducted via a night hatch.

The company previously told this newspaper it did not have any plans ‘at the moment’ to open 24 hours and would probably close at 9 pm or 10 pm.