A POLICY for regulating sex establishments in Warrington is being drafted by the council.

The document will outline information for interested parties and how any application for a licence will be determined.

Council licensing officers hope it will promote consistency and allow inappropriate applications to be rejected.

Councillors believe it has been prompted by the sex club currently operating at Orford Farm, as exclusively revealed by the Guardian in November.

Poulton North Clr Colin Oliver was present at the licensing committee meeting during which the new policy was discussed.

He said: “What the farm in Orford has shown us is that we’ve got nothing in place to stop that sort of thing.

“Finding out about that club was such a surprise and we couldn’t do anything about it.

“A new policy will give restrictions on how sex establishments can be set up, what hours they can open and who can go there.

“This is a way of putting people off setting up those kinds of premises, and to make it safer for the community.”

And Clr Oliver believes that making the policy at an earlier date could have prevented the fetish club on School Road, which operates next to St Margaret’s Primary School, from being opened.

“It would have been a lot better to have that policy in place then because more could have been done about the farm,” he said.

“If this policy existed we could have stopped that from happening.”

He added that no applications for a sex establishment has been made in the area.

The council says the sex establishment policy has been drafted according to a national directive and is not related to Orford Farm.

Clr Mike Biggin, executive board member for public protection, said: “The council must consider any legitimate request for a new sexual establishment.

“A clear policy will protect the community from inappropriate applications and give them a greater say should any application be received.”

The draft policy can be viewed at warrington.gov .uk/home/business/licensing/ general_licensing/sex_ establishments.

Anyone wishing to comment can e-mail cexlicensing@ warrington.gov.uk. Consultation finishes on April 11.