A TOWN centre night club has been refused a late licence that would have allowed revellers to keep partying well into Sunday mornings.

The Cube, in Spennymoor, wanted to extend its weekend opening hours to 8am on Sundays but residents and police objected to the plans.

Owner Colin Fletcher applied to Sedgefield Borough Council for the extended entertainment licence in anticipation of a licensing law shake-up which comes into force next year.

If it had been approved, the club would have extended its Saturday night music and dancing for up to 750 customers at a time by opening for an extra six hours on Sunday mornings.

At a meeting of the licensing committee this week, councillors heard residents' concerns about the impact the extra drinking hours would have on the quality of their lives.

They believed people walking home after leaving the club would be rowdy, leave litter, cause criminal damage and fight, disturbing neighbours who were trying to sleep.

It was also feared that police resources would be stretched and that the extra availability of alcohol could lead to drink and drug abuse.

Community Inspector Steve Winship said: "My objections were based on two things - crime and disorder and the impact this move would have on the quality of life of local residents.

"The venue is a well-run establishment, but it is not about that. Geographically, it is not suitable for extended opening hours because it is surrounded by residential areas."

Chairman of the committee Councillor George Gray said: "We listened to what the police and local residents had to say and the decision to refuse this application was unanimous."

Mr Fletcher said: "I was not surprised that we didn't get it, but we did gain one thing from the meeting.

"It has highlighted a few problems that people in the town are experiencing because of people leaving licensed premises throughout the area. We will do all we can and work with other agencies, such as the police and councils, to tackle these issues and, as chairman of the PubWatch scheme, I'll raise the issues with other licensees."

Insp Winship hopes the decision will quash any misconceptions that the new licensing laws will lead to widespread 24-hour drinking.

Instead, every application will be considered with its surroundings in mind.