Walsall nightclub where customer was killed outside stripped of its licence

A nightclub in Walsall where a customer was killed outside has been forced to close its doors after we successfully applied to have its licence revoked.

DeCode Lounge, on Lichfield Street, has been stripped of its licence following a summary review hearing held last Monday (6 Jan) after licensing officers including Jen Mellor made successful representations.

Last month the venue had its premises licence suspended for 28 days following the death of 51-year-old Kevin Taylor, a customer who died outside its doors in the early hours of 7 December.

During Monday’s licensing and safety sub-committee hearing our licensing officers made representations and revealed our concerns about how the venue was being run.

We were concerned about the care and safety of customers of DeCode Lounge. This included Mr Taylor who was discovered unconscious outside the doors while the venue closed, with no call from the venue to the emergency services including ourselves to come to his aid.

We also stated how the venue had already been the scene of several assaults where one required the victim going to hospital. This included both the evenings of October 6 and 7 last year with the latter not being reported to us by the venue despite having a duty to do so.

We had lost confidence with the licensee and felt they were not able to work with the current conditions of the licence which was further impacting on the safety of customers.

Superintendent Pervez Mohammed, Deputy Commander at Walsall LPA, said:

“We cannot tolerate premises where appropriate safety measures are either absent or poorly managed. The safety and well-being of customers must be the top priority for anyone running establishments like DeCode Lounge.

“Unfortunately, this was not the case here. Public safety is non-negotiable, and we are committed to ensuring venues across our town are operated responsibly and diligently managed.”

A 32-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter and will appear at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 6 March.