A retail outlet in Nelson that allegedly sold drink to an 11-year-old child faces the possibility of having its alcohol licence revoked following what has been described as a damning occurrence.

The boy’s mother and father contacted Caerphilly County Borough Council’s trading standards department after which inspectors identified multiple additional issues regarding how Village Stores, located on High Street, was being run.

Law enforcement and the local health authority have supported demands for the licence to be suspended, which would prevent any alcohol sales for up to three months.

A spokesperson for licence holder Nirojan Thavarasa stated the shopkeeper understood the gravity of the situation and had committed to making improvements to the licence conditions.

At a council licensing committee gathering on Wednesday August 5, trading standards official Rhian Cross urged members to examine a serious matter concerning the provision of alcohol to an 11-year-old child.

She explained that the boy’s parents visited the store to confront the staff member responsible, but the worker reportedly was unaware of the legal age limit for alcohol sales.

Subsequent trading standards inspections at Village Stores revealed deficiencies with CCTV access, staff training documentation and logs of refusals to sell to minors, according to Ms Cross.

This situation was worsened by Mr Thavarasa appearing to be overseas – and upon his return, Ms Cross noted his failure to work with investigators looking into the June 2025 event.

She pointed out that selling alcohol to those under 18 also constitutes a criminal offence, though legal proceedings had been hindered by trouble locating the former employee involved.

Mr Thavarasa had entered a due diligence argument, so the criminal case has been paused, committee members were told.

PCSO John Taylor from Gwent Police stated the force endorsed the request for a licence review, noting that video recordings of the incident – shown to the committee in private – were extremely damning, leaving him with no current confidence that Mr Thavarasa has upheld the council’s licensing objectives.

The committee also heard from Simon Hodsdon, director of public health at Aneurin Bevan University Health Board.

He described the incident as particularly worrying given the child’s very young age, noting that alcohol consumption can impact physical and mental development alongside connections to other harmful conduct.

Council licensing officer Sandra Lewis-Williams proposed that the suggested suspension could give Mr Thavarasa opportunity to put proper measures and procedures in place, including staff instruction.

Macie Channing, acting on behalf of Mr Thavarasa, said the shopkeeper had appointed a new licence holder and had agreed to fresh licence conditions put forward by police and the council.

She stated that they recognised the significant concerns that exist. She added that the licence holder fully understood how serious this incident was, and that they are not seeking to downplay that in any way.

She explained Mr Thavarasa maintained that age verification procedures were operational at the time, but the employee failed to adhere to their training.

Ms Channing continued that they are not presenting this as justification – it was a serious mistake.

The committee withdrew to deliberate the matter and will announce its verdict within five working days.