A FOOTBALL club s plans to increase the operating hours at its social club have caused concern among its elderly neighbours. Royston Football Club wants permission to keep the club at its stadium in Garden Walk open until 2am on Fridays and Saturday. Curr

A FOOTBALL club's plans to increase the operating hours at its social club have caused concern among its elderly neighbours.

Royston Football Club wants permission to keep the club at its stadium in Garden Walk open until 2am on Fridays and Saturday. Currently its licence means it has to stop serving alcohol, and playing live or recorded music, at midnight.

The plan will go before North Herts District Council's licensing and appeals committee next week.

Football club president Alan Barlow said the changes will make little difference to the way the club operates, but the plans have led to a raft of objections from local residents, particularly those living in the Collingwood Court retirement scheme.

One reads: "The present hours are bad enough for me, with music so loud and drums banging the whole evening", while another objector said: "It's dreadful now hearing a thumping noise (not music) till midnight. Some front gardens in Garden Walk have been vandalised by these inebriated people."

In total the district council has received nine letters from residents objecting to the changes, including one from Louise Crow, from Peveral Retirement, which is responsible for the running of Collingwood Court.

In her letter she said: "The residents have no objections to the increase in licensing hours on New Year's Eve but strongly object to Fridays and Saturdays, as they already suffer noise disturbance until midnight.

"To extend these hours further would only prolong the amount of time they are disturbed, which is unacceptable to this age group of residents."

Mr Barlow said: "We want to change the licence to give us a bit more flexibility in the way in which we operate the club

"Although the licence is until 2am, I would expect most functions to still finish at around midnight as they do currently. There won't be any big changes.

"Occasionally there is a bit of noise, but generally events we put on are trouble free, and we've never any problems in terms of having to call the police."

The district council's licensing and appeals committee will consider the proposals at its meeting on Friday, November 13.