3one7 handed one-month licence suspension by Camden Council last night

A Finchley Road bar was handed a one-month licence suspension last night by Camden Council.

Camden police called for a full review into the licence of 3one7 after a series of incidents of underage drinking occurred at the venue - including a 12-year-old girl becoming drunk after purchasing three pints of beer and two whiskeys at the bar.

PC Rhodri Evans told the licensing panel: “In my three years working as a licensing officer in Camden I have never come across such a shocking incident in a pub where such a young child has been found to be so intoxicated.”

Initially Mr Evans had called for a full revocation of the licence.

But the panel, and the police, indicated that they were willing to be more lenient with their decision because the pub had been taken back into the brewery’s hands.

The brewery, Scottish and Newcastle, which owns upwards of 1,800 pubs across Britain said they had been involved in legal proceedings against the bar’s previous manager, Toby Mansourian, since April 2009.

They took back the keys on Tuesday.

The panel said that the suspension of hours would allow for a “clean break” from the venue’s troubled past and that it would give the brewery a chance to “re-brand” it for a more appropriate, older clientele.

Councillor Andrew Mennear expressed reservations that the bar would change it’s image but agreed a month’s suspension was an appropriate response.

He said: “My knowledge of the bar goes back over twelve years. It has always been an establishment that attracts young people and trouble and I’m not sure how this will change. It looks like a dive and it is a dive.”

The one-month licence suspension will begin in 21 days, unless Scottish and Newcastle decide to appeal the decision.