Chesterfield nightspot The Avenue ordered to meet several requirements

Chesterfield Borough Council's licencing committee met on Wednesday afternoon to review the licence of the Beetwell Street venue after health and safety concerns were raised.

A borough council spokesman said the committee decided to conditionally suspend The Avenue's licence for one month.

Paul Birch, owner of The Avenue, has 21 days to appeal this decision.

If an appeal is not submitted, the conditional suspension will come into force.

This means the nightspot will be allowed to remain open as long as several requirements are in place.

These include an updated health and safety policy; full compliance with a fire safety enforcement notice; clear records to show staff training has taken place and a requirement that children are not allowed on the premises unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Councillor Andy Bellamy, chair of the committee which held the hearing, said: "We take the safety of our residents very seriously, which is why we decided on a conditional suspension of The Avenue's licence.

"We hope to see the requirements in place to ensure safety of the venue's staff and customers meaning that the venue can remain open."

In a statement, The Avenue said it is 'not closed for any amount of time' and there is 'no change for our customers'.

Mr Birch added: "The problem is we used a company for our health and safety and risk assessments and it was incompetent.

"Moving forward we have instructed a new health and safety company which has put new procedures in place.

"We would like to thank the borough council for working with us to resolve some issues."

As previously reported, the borough council's environmental health department submitted the application to review the licence.

In it, they raised concerns over an alleged 'lack of health and safety arrangements', a 'lack of health and safety training' and a 'lack of risk assessments' at the venue.

The Avenue, which opened at the end of last year, occupies the building which used to house Rileys snooker and pool club.

It is the largest independent music venue in the UK with a capacity for 1,800 people.

When it launched, Mr Birch said he wanted to help rejuvenate Chesterfield's nightlife.