Dominos is a popular game among local people
One of Brixton’s most popular and oldest community institutes, the Domino Club, will have its fate decided this week at a Lambeth Council meeting.
A meeting will be held on Thursday 30 November, at the Karibou Centre, Brixton, at 7pm, in which the councils licensing committee will discuss issues with the Police, who are making attempts to have the clubs license revoked.
Police claim that the Domino Club is a hub for drug dealers and has been the scene of assaults and fire arms incidents previously, and are trying to have the licence revoked as a precautionary method.
In July of last year, police were called to an incident taking place inside the club, where a male suspect threatened and held a handgun to the stomach of another male.
Also in 2008 a 23-year-old Jamaican man was stabbed in the throat on the premises of the Domino Club whilst attending an event with friends, and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The police understand that if the club was to be closed, it would hinder their relationship with the Brixton community, releasing in a statement: “Brixton Sports and Social Club is a key part of the community in Brixton, and a full revocation of the [licensing] certificate would, in our opinion, seriously undermine the relationship between the community, the council and the police.”
The Domino Club was built in the 80s as a direct result of the Brixton Riots, with an aim to help rebuild the community.
The Building is also home to 2 more modern examples of efforts to bring the community together, Brixton Soup Kitchen and Lawyers in the Soup Kitchen.
A twitter post from Brixton Soup Kitchen calls out for local residents to come along to the hearing and support their cause to keep the Club open.
On Thursday 30th we have a Lambeth licensing hearing at the Karibu centre at 7pm. We need your support as the police are trying close down the Brixton Domino Club with brazen and awful lies which will essentially kill the Brixton Soup Kitchen Support us by retweeting &turning up!
— Brixton Soup Kitchen (@BrixSoupKitchen) November 21, 2017
The licensing committee will consider several reports and documents, but the main issue being the view of the police and council that the property possesses a license to run as a private members club, but is in fact being ran as a commercial nightclub open to the public, with no control over who enters, and what they do in and around the premises.
Police state: “given the lack of effective management and controls at the premises, it cannot continue in its current state in a manner that promotes the licensing objectives.
“We do not wish to find ourselves in the position of having had another, more serious, incident and having to look back to explain why we did not do more to protect those who socialise there.”
