Lap dancing club bid for licence faces widespread opposition

Spearmint Rhino in Brown Street, close to the Sheffield Hallam University students’ union, art galleries and the Showroom cinema, has been forced to apply for a sexual entertainment licence, under new powers granted to local authorities under the Policing and Crime Act 2009.

Until now the club, which is part of a national chain, had been operating under a standard alcohol licence.

However, Sheffield Council adopted the new guidelines last year, which mean that sex clubs have until May 1 this year to either gain a new licence or be closed down.

At a meeting next Tuesday, February 28, members of the authority’s licence board will consider an application from London-based Sonfield Developments Ltd – the company which operates Spearmint Rhino – for a sexual entertainment venue licence.

A total of 56 letters of objection have been submitted opposing the new licence and claiming, among other things, that the club is “inhibiting the growth and development” of nearby businesses.

One objector said the area is a “cultural hub for young people” and added: “For this area to develop into the future as a thriving area, drawing inward investment and supporting the production of world class artistic products, the quality of the area needs to be protected.”

Another opponent said: “Many of the cultural institutions in the Cultural Industries Quarter work closely with children under the age of 16, as does Sheffield Hallam University, which is also adjacent.

“Having a sexual entertainment venue in such close proximity is inappropriate and unwelcome.”

Another member of the public said: “The club is immediately adjacent to the public open space adjoining the Sheffield Hallam University students’ union.

“Having a pole dancing club overlooking this is inappropriate. It gives exactly the wrong message to parents and prospective students about the environment into which the young people, fresh from school, will be arriving.”

One opponent told the council: “As a woman, as a mother and as a proud citizen of Sheffield I am offended and embarrassed by the presence of a lap dancing club in the heart of our Cultural Industries Quarter.

“This establishment promotes women as passive objects of entertainment and normalises this objectification as a ‘fun night out’ for the boys.”

Another woman said she felt “profoundly uncomfortable walking past Spearmint Rhino ,and anticipating what I may have to deal with as I do so.”

In its application, Sonfield Developments points out that only the entrance foyer is visible from the outside of Spearmint Rhino, and “no areas where relevant entertainment is provided are visible from the outside, due to the location of the rooms and windows being boarded or blacked out.”

The application adds: “The premises has operated for a number of years with policies and practices to promote the licensing objectives under the Licensing Act 2003. No complaints have been received.

“It is not proposed to change the operation, policies or practices.”

A lengthy list of the rules of the club is also submitted with the application.

These rules ban customers from touching the dancers and add that customers must remain fully clothed at all times.

Dancers, meanwhile, must wear high heels – with a minimum of a three-inch heel – even while performing a nude table dance.

Tuesday’s meeting begins at 10am at Sheffield Town Hall.