Derbyshire nightclub taken extensive steps to keep “trouble-causers” out after 15 crimes in 18 months

Security and management at a Derbyshire nightclub say they have taken extensive steps to keep "trouble-causers" out after seeing 15 crimes in 18 months. Watch more of our videos on Shots! and live on Freeview channel 276

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Bulan in Dale Road, Matlock, was the subject of a Derbyshire Dales District Council licensing hearing in November due to police concerns over an "unacceptable" level of crime and disorder linked to the venue. Now, Mike Houghton, director of Tri-Point Security - which provides door staff for the venue - and son and father duo Luke and John Taylor (licence holder and designated premises supervisor respectively), have shared the attempts they have made to improve Bulan's reputation.

The venue management are still considering whether or not they will appeal the outcome of last month's licensing hearing, which saw new restrictions placed on Bulan, including reducing its opening hours to close at 2am instead of 3am.

Left to right: Luke Taylor (licence holder), Mike Houghton (director of Tri-Point Security) and John Taylor (designated premises supervisor) stood outside Bulan nightclub in Dale Road, Matlock.

This also included making it mandatory for the venue to have three door security staff at all times, with all staff to be wearing body-worn cameras and high-vis jackets. Mr Houghton's team took over five and a half months ago and the venue says this has seen a marked reduction in incidents. Mr Houghton said: "Working in door security is not about looking for fights and standing around looking menacing.

It involves preventing fights and sexual assaults and creating a welcoming environment, not a threatening one. "It is up to us to make sure the safe environment stays that way. "When we do need to eject someone we ensure we do this safely and can provide them somewhere to wait if they are too intoxicated or give them some water."

Mr Houghton claimed the introduction of a dress code at the venue had made a significant difference, with the idea that people will be less likely to misbehave if they are smartly dressed. He said: "We have stopped trouble causers from coming in, to maintain that safe environment." Mr Houghton said the idea of all door security staff needing to wear body cameras was "overkill" because "it is making us look like we are expecting trouble", with the same applying to the need for three door staff.

He said this could hit the financial viability of the venue and that a more acceptable option, pitched during the hearing, was for a last entry of 2am, which has already been brought in. Mr Houghton says this has already seen the venue turn 20 people away when there were only 30 people inside, choosing to avoid the "risk of trouble" over profits, he said. Banning changes have also been brought in, with the venue having an initial one-month ban for first-time offenders, followed by a three-month ban for second offences, six-month bans for a third offence and a whole year ban for a fourth offence.

He said there was also now a list of people who are banned indefinitely, with other venues teaming up to keep them out of their bars, nightclubs and pubs. Luke Taylor, who has run the venue for two years, told the LDRS that "crime has stopped quite considerably" since Tri-Point took over the door security at Bulan. He said: "It is now safe and people can have a good time and leave correctly and we are not creating a nuisance for our neighbours.

"We do not want any trouble in this venue at all, which is why we have sometimes banned people indefinitely. Undesirable people are not accepted." He said that with Bulan being the last bar open from 2am to 3am there was the risk of people from other venues flocking towards his venue, but said the 2am last-entry rule was preventing the risk of people who were already intoxicated from entering.

John Taylor said that it takes time to work out who the "undesirable" people are when you open a new venue but said these customers had now been "eradicated". Mr Houghton said the venue needed more time to show that the changes that have been made will have the desired long-term effect. The November hearing was called by Derbyshire police after "unacceptable" levels of crime causing a "significant demand on police resources", said PC Lora Holdgate, which was "putting the public at risk of serious harm".

This included 15 crimes in 18 months, with many involving serious violence.

References

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