A Wembley nightclub has been forced to close after its licence was suspended in the wake of a shooting that left a 24-year-old man with potentially life-changing injuries.
The suspension means the Douglas Avenue venue cannot trade while the case moves through the council’s licensing process and the courts.
Spice Klub — also known as VT Club and The Basement — on Douglas Avenue must remain shut after Brent Council’s licensing committee suspended its premises licence with immediate effect, pending a full review hearing.
The decision marks the latest development in a case that has moved swiftly through the council’s licensing process and the courts since the shooting in the early hours of 3 October.
The decision follows the early-hours shooting on Friday, 3 October, when officers were called to Douglas Avenue, between Wembley Central and Alperton, at around 3.35am. A 24-year-old man was found injured at the scene and taken to hospital in a life-threatening condition.
A week after the attack, the Metropolitan Police confirmed the victim’s injuries were “potentially life changing”. No arrests have been confirmed in connection with the shooting, and the investigation remains ongoing.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the force applied to Brent Council for both a closure order covering the venue and an expedited review of its premises licence for Spice Klub, also known as VT Club and The Basement. The closure order was granted and remains in force until Tuesday, 20 October, when the matter is due to be considered at a further hearing.
The Met said the club’s licence had also been suspended with immediate effect while the full review is awaited. Because the criminal investigation is still live, the hearings will be held in private.
Licensing and court hearings are normally held in public, but they can be heard behind closed doors where publicity could prejudice a live criminal investigation.
A Brent Council spokesperson said the licensing committee had determined that the suspension should take effect straight away, ahead of the full review hearing.
Separately, magistrates adjourned an application for a closure order to a full hearing on 20 October, directing that a closure notice served on the venue on 9 October — in relation to “nuisance or disorder” — remain in force until then. The application had previously been adjourned from 12 October, and the case is due to be assessed at Willesden Magistrates’ Court.
The council said the premises must therefore remain closed unless otherwise directed by the court, adding that the matter remains subject to ongoing legal and licensing proceedings.
The venue is based on the same road where the shooting happened. Doorbell camera footage from Douglas Avenue captured the sound of rapid gunfire, with people seen running in different directions.
Douglas Avenue runs between Wembley Central and Alperton in the London Borough of Brent.
The suspension is an interim measure while the full review is carried out. The review hearing will decide the longer-term future of the venue’s licence.
An expedited review can be sought where police link a premises to serious crime or disorder, allowing a council to take swift interim action — such as suspending a licence — before the full hearing takes place. Outcomes at a full review can range from new conditions being attached to a licence to its suspension or revocation.
The next milestone comes on Tuesday, 20 October, when magistrates will consider the closure order application at a full hearing. Until then, the closure notice stays in force and the club’s licence remains suspended.
Anyone with information about the shooting, or who was in the area at the time, is urged to call police on 101, quoting reference 1115/3OCT. Officers are keen to hear from anyone who was on or near Douglas Avenue in the early hours of 3 October.
