Leadmill venue 'owes council £10,000' legal costs

Sheffield City Council has said it is owed £10,000 in unpaid legal costs by the tenants of music venue The Leadmill.

The costs were awarded by a judge in November after The Leadmill Ltd lost its appeal against the council's decision to grant a shadow premises licence to the owner of the building, MVL Properties.

A spokesperson for the local authority said it was "in correspondence with The Leadmill to ensure full and prompt payment", which is more than four weeks overdue.

The BBC has approached The Leadmill for comment.

In 2017, the much-loved venue was bought by Electric Group, which served an eviction notice on tenants The Leadmill Ltd in 2022.

Electric Group has said it plans to run the venue itself and won a recent legal battle to take control of the building after a three-year dispute.

In September 2023 Electric Group's parent company, MVL Properties 2017 Ltd, was granted a shadow licence by the council.

Obtaining a shadow licence would mean they could operate the venue themselves in the event The Leadmill's licence came to an end.

The Leadmill, whose sole director is Phil Mills, appealed against the council's decision, but this was rejected by district judge Tim Spruce.

As a result, Judge Spruce awarded costs against The Leadmill, ordering them to pay £10,000 to Sheffield City Council and £18,000 to MVL Properties.

A spokesperson for MVL Properties said the money owed to them had been paid.

The council said the deadline for its payment was 18 March.

Last month the tenants of The Leadmill applied for permission to appeal against a judge's decision to evict them.

The Court of Appeal said a judge was yet to decide on the application.

Since it opened in 1980 the venue has hosted performances from some of the biggest names in music, including Coldplay, Oasis, and Arctic Monkeys.

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