Strong objections to a lap dancing club in Newmarket renewing its licence have been brushed aside.

Heaven Awaits, which is in the High Street, now has another year to function after councillors at Forest Heath District Council gave approval to the latest application.

It is an issue that has been rumbling on for a number of years and once again Newmarket Town Council raised objections saying that the sex establishement is “totally out of keeping with the High Street”.

It said it does not have any issues with the club being in the town but “strongly objects” to it being in its current location.

However, members of the district council’s licensing and regulatory committee, gave the go ahead for the licence renewal at yesterday’s meeting.

The town council felt the club’s proximity to sites including places of worship, a play area and the Town Hall was completely inappropriate and in conflict with Forest Heath’s own policy.

Speaking after the hearing, Dean Adams, the owner of Heaven Awaits, said: “It seems to be the same objections every year and has been going on for over a decade.

“It appears that the town council is going through the motions but nobody from the local community objected.

“We only took over the club in February and the new licence covers us for every weekday but as a business we choose the correct times and days that we operate but we are very happy with the decision and outcome from the committee members.”

Speaking on behalf of Newmarket Town Council, councillor Justin Wadham, said they were very disappointed with the decision by Forest Heath.

He said: “I found the whole process surreal as the fundamental grounds are all based on the club’s position and the application will fail if it’s near a school or place of worship and we were bewildered by it all and yet the thing gets waved through.”

Forest Heath’s sex establishment licensing policy states the council will not normally grant a licence where any premises within the vicinity have uses including a school, place of worship, family leisure, important historic buildings and important public and cultural facilities.

The town council added in a letter to Forest Heath that the licensing committee’s flagrant refusal to adhere to its own Sex Establishment Policy in the matter was to the “detriment of historic Newmarket.”