Alcohol can be sold to people at Houghton Mill and Waterclose Meadows, but plans for outdoor cinema events and a cocktail bar have been dropped.

The National Trust applied for a licence to hold “family-friendly events” at its site in Houghton, including selling alcohol and showing films until 11.30pm.

However, concerns were raised by some in the village that the plans would lead to “delinquent behaviour”.

A representative of the National Trust told councillors at a meeting of Huntingdonshire District Council’s licensing sub-committee last week that the concerns had been listened to.

In light of the objections, they said they would only ask for a licence to sell alcohol until 5pm, and that the alcohol would only be sold from the shop rather than across the wider site.

READ MORE: Concern over HDC licence bid for Houghton Mill

They said the request for both the late-night refreshments, and being able to show films, had been removed.

However, they did ask to be allowed to hold up to 15 larger events over the course of a calendar year, which could last up until 9pm.

The representative said the original application was similar to licences held on other National Trust sites across the country, and that the organisation had not anticipated it would be “controversial”.

They said: “We were somewhat surprised when we advertised and 41 representations had been submitted. We had no intention to cause such a stir.

“Those making representations have been listened to and the application has been amended significantly.”

They highlighted that no concerns had been raised by police or environmental health officers at the district council.

Some of the people who had objected to the application told councillors at the meeting they believed the application should be withdrawn and resubmitted with the amendments, in order to give people in the village the chance to comment on the proposed changes.

Councillor David Keane, from Houghton and Wyton Parish Council, said while the adapted proposals were “much better than the original application”, he did not feel there had been the chance to consult with the wider village about the changes.

Council officers highlighted that the applicant was allowed to amend the application, and that the amendments were shared with all those who had submitted comments to the district council.

Councillor Stephen Ferguson also told the members of the public at the meeting that they could share their views on the amended plans.

One member of the public said he still had concerns about alcohol being sold at the site due to it being close to the water, and that he had worries about people jumping into the river.

He said: “If you are encouraging people to take on board alcohol right next door, it increases the risk of something going wrong. There is no policing of that river I think by the National Trust. I think it is a really serious problem.”

The representative of the National Trust said it would operate a ‘Challenge 25’ when selling alcohol.

They said it would not be “bargain booze” and that they were asking for permission to sell alcohol in a “relatively small area to improve the customer experience”.

After considering the application in private, the sub-committee agreed to grant the licence.

In the decision document, it highlighted that no objections had been raised by responsible authorities and that no crime and disorder incidents had been attributed to the National Trust.

It said there was “insufficient evidence” that the licensing objectives were not being promoted, and that the interested parties had had 21 days to consider the amendments prior to the meeting and were given the chance to comment on the changes.