Sussex shop which sold alcohol and vapes to children loses license
Some of the purchases were made while youngsters were still in school uniform
A shop in Haywards Heath has had its premises licence revoked after repeatedly selling alcohol and vapes to children.
K&A Enterprise, in South Road, has 21 days to appeal the decision made by Mid Sussex District Council’s liquor licensing panel on Tuesday (August 8th).
The call to review the licence was made by West Sussex Trading Standards and supported by Sussex Police and the county council’s public health team, the latter of which accused the licensee of showing ‘a disregard for the law’.
The meeting was told that, in September 2021, a child volunteer working with Trading Standards had been sold a four-pack of Carlsberg beer during a test purchase.
Despite repeated advice and warnings to the licensee, reports from concerned parents were received by police and Trading Standards about further sales to youngsters.
One involved the sale of a four-pack of Stella lager to a 16-year-old, while another said vapes were being sold to children wearing school uniform.
A second test purchase was carried out in February, during which a sales assistant sold a bottle of VK Passionfruit to an under-age girl without checking her age.
When asked why, he told Trading Standards staff that he had been ‘busy’.
Peter Aston, Trading Standards team manager, said a countywide zero tolerance approach had been taken to the sale of alcohol to minors.
He added: “Unfortunately and frustratingly, intelligence reports to Trading Standards of businesses selling restricted products in Mid Sussex to children appears to have escalated despite the efforts of Trading Standards and the police.”
Mr Aston also described how out-of-date food had been found at the shop – a breach of public safety – along with food with no English labelling.
He said that revoking the premises licence would send a ‘strong message’ to other businesses.
At the time of the incidents, the premises licence holder and Designated Premises Supervisor was Kandeepan Kandhasamy.
Both positions have since been transferred to Selvakkumar Karaimuthu, the member of staff who sold the Carslberg to a child.
While a representative acknowledged that the shop had not been managed properly, he said it would be unfair to punish Mr Karaimuthu for something that happened before he was in charge.
The panel was not convinced by claims that things would be different from now on and the licence was revoked.