Soho has long been the centre of London’s nightlife, but Westminster Council’s strict licensing laws mean that many of its bars and clubs have struggled in recent years.
Much of Soho sits inside the West End Cumulative Impact Zone, where new late-night licences face a presumption to be refused unless venues can prove exceptional circumstances, and further bureaucracy poses even more challenges.
High costs, constant applications and uncertainty for businesses, make it harder for pubs, bars and clubs to stay open in an already challenging hospitality industry.
Soho based hospitality worker Seth Robinson said: “Getting a late night license is tricky, there’s a whole load of hoops that you have to jump through, and smaller venues struggle a lot more with it.”
But change may be coming. Westminster Council has approved an After Dark Strategy for 2025–2040, promising a ‘vibrant, inclusive and well-managed’ night-time environment.
At the same time, the government wants to overhaul what it calls ‘outdated’ licensing rules, potentially giving venues longer hours and fewer bureaucratic hurdles.
The question now is whether these reforms will bring regeneration to Soho, and how the historic area could be further supported.
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Feature image courtesy of Lucy Reade
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