Tropix, 10 Clapham High Street, can now sell alcohol to 3.30am and open to 4am. Councillors granted it against their licensing team's advice, with four conditions.
Tropix, the bar in the old Royal Oak pub at 10 Clapham High Street, can now sell alcohol until 3.30am every day and stay open until 4am. Both are an hour later than before.
Lambeth councillors granted the change at a licensing sub-committee on 30 September. The council’s own licensing team had asked them to refuse it. The decision is recorded in the draft minutes of the meeting, which the council has now published.
We reported the application before the hearing.
The four conditions
The sub-committee said the licensing objectives could be met by adding four conditions to the licence. The minutes list them as:
- “A last time of 03:00am”, after the venue’s lawyer offered at the hearing that no new customers would be let in after 3am
- a maximum capacity of 220 people
- a women’s safety condition, using the council’s standard wording, with staff training and safety measures
- controls on the outside smoking area between 3am and 4am, with no drinks taken outside after 3am and a smoking area policy to manage numbers and dispersal
The application, reference 26/00086/PRMVAR, was made by TPX25 Limited.
What the applicant said
Marcus Lavell of Keystone Law spoke for the venue. The minutes record him describing the application as “straightforward”. He said the bar had traded at the site for seven years and already operated until about 3am.
He told councillors that neither the police nor Environmental Health had objected, and that no residents had made representations. He said the temporary event notices the venue had used to open later on busy nights had drawn no complaints.
Who objected
The council’s licensing authority asked for refusal. Justin Atkinson said Clapham High Street is a district centre in the council’s licensing policy. For drinking places there, the policy suggests closing at midnight from Sunday to Thursday and 1am on Friday and Saturday.
The minutes record his concern that a later finish could bring more noise, crowds outside, smoking, litter and problems as people leave. Because the bar already traded past the policy hours, he said there was not enough justification for a further hour.
Councillor Linda Bray, a ward councillor for Clapham Town, also objected. The minutes record her citing a recent neighbourhood police meeting. She said crime in Clapham was up about 50% on the previous year, including a 22% rise in sexual offences and a 49.4% rise in theft. Those are her figures from that meeting. The minutes do not give the period they cover, and the police did not present them to the sub-committee.
She said she was not suggesting the incidents she mentioned were linked to Tropix.
How the new hours compare
| Activity | Before | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Sale of alcohol | 02:30 | 03:30 |
| Recorded music and dance entertainment | 02:30 | 03:30 |
| Late night refreshment | 02:30 | 03:30 |
| Opening hours | 03:00 | 04:00 |
The times come from the application set out in the minutes and the officer’s report. The sub-committee granted the extra hour on top of the existing licence.
What it means for you
- Tropix can stay open an hour later. Last orders move to 3.30am and closing to 4am, every day of the week.
- No new customers after 3am. The final hour is meant for people already inside to drink up and leave gradually.
- Smoking outside is restricted after 3am, and drinks cannot be taken outside after that time.
- If the venue causes problems, anyone living or working nearby can ask the council to review its licence at any time. Lambeth’s licensing team is on 020 7926 6108.
- The decision could be appealed. Under the Licensing Act 2003 the applicant, or anyone who made a representation, can appeal to the magistrates’ court within 21 days of being notified (Licensing Act 2003, Schedule 5). The minutes do not say when written notice was sent.
The minutes are still in draft. The sub-committee is due to approve them as a correct record at its meeting on 28 October.
More on the high street: our Clapham planning news page and things to do in Clapham.
Sources: Lambeth Council Licensing Sub-Committee, 30 September 2026: printed draft minutes (item 4c) and the officer’s report for 26/00086/PRMVAR; Licensing Act 2003, Schedule 5.
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