Wetherspoons ‘betraying community’ in Leeds Otley Run row

People living near the route of one of the country’s largest pub crawls have accused pub chain JD Wetherspoon of “betraying the community”.

The operator is seeking to alter its licence for The Golden Beam in Leeds to enable it to admit people taking part in the Otley Run.

Its representatives said the venue would remain “very much community-based” yet neighbours raised concerns at a public meeting held in Headingley on Monday evening.

Anna Douglas, who chairs the Otley Run Action Group, said the area was already “a major public health, security, and safety hazard zone” and she did not want to see a 20th pub added to the route.

“If you keep exponentially allowing more licensed premises into Headingley it will not de-escalate,” she told the BBC.

“It will continue to attract more and more, not just regional but national and international tour operators, who see Headingley as a major stag and hen party destination.”

The Golden Beam building dates back to 1912 and was originally a Sunday school before Leeds Girls’ High School took it over as its theatre and music centre.

It was vacant from 2010 until 2021, when Wetherspoons won consent to open the pub, but Leeds City Council insisted on conditions to its operating licence that barred Otley Run groups.

It was later granted permission to let Otley Runners inside across five consecutive Saturdays in September and early October as part of a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) agreement.

Among the issues raised at the meeting were public urination and defecation.

One man in the 40-strong crowd told the panel his terraced street had been used as a “public toilet” by “coachloads of people” coming from outside of Leeds “already intoxicated upon arriving in Headingley at 11am”.

He described bottles being flung at his family and aggressive behaviour from visitors.

The representatives from JD Wetherspoon told the audience that the large number of toilets and door staff would help alleviate any issues.

They also listed licensing conditions that included a ban on offensive or sexually explicit fancy dress and a designated area for patrons not taking part in the Otley Run.

In a statement, the chain said: “We are not in any way changing the character of the pub and it will remain very much community-based.

“We believe that allowing well-behaved customers participating in the Otley Run to use The Golden Beam will improve rather than encourage some of the anti- social behaviour in the area.”

Paula Mawhinney has lived in Leeds for the last 40 years, and believes adding The Golden Beam to the Otley Run would only increase issues.

“It has expanded so much over the years. It is not an event, it is every weekend,” she said.

“You go from something which was fun and part of the culture to being something that swamps it, locals just say they are not going into Headingley.”

Sue Buckle said Wetherspoons was “betraying the community”.

She had concerns about the chain taking over the site back in 2021.

“They made promises to us and we wanted to believe them, but it feels they are wanting to make more and more money despite the welfare and wishes of the community.”

Also in attendance at last night’s meeting was local councillor Jonathan Pryor.

He said he had submitted an objection to the council.

“This is our one place left where it is not taken over by the Otley Run,” he said.

“It adds a great vibrancy to the area but it has grown into something which it just was not five years ago.

“In trying to control that and get it back to what it was, adding a venue of this size just does not help.”

The Otley Run began as a student pub crawl, but in recent years has become a weekend event involving older groups such as stag and hen parties. It includes a number of pubs and bars along Otley Road and ends in the city centre.

A spokesperson for Wetherspoons said the company would “work with neighbours and other local stakeholders during the application’s consultation period to answer any questions they may have”.

The consultation on the proposed change runs until 21 November.