A brewery in west Reading is looking to extend the opening hours of its taproom.

The owners of Double-Barrelled Brewery, based on Stadium Way in Tilehurst, have applied to Reading Borough Council’s (RBC) planning team for a new certificate of lawfulness to open longer.

The brewery was previously granted permission for the on-site taproom as long as it is ancillary (in a supporting role) to the brewery.

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Currently, the taproom can open for 13 hours per week out of the total 168 hours per week that the brewery is in operation.

Co-owner Luci Clayton-Jones said the brewery wants to open more frequently in busier seasonal periods and would not open later than 9pm.

The owners want to either remove the limit on hours for the taproom completely or increase this to 30 hours per week to allow it to open on Sunday afternoons, Thursday evenings and mid-week for pre-ordered click and collect from its online shop.

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This would allow them to accommodate less people in a longer space of time, to help with social distancing, as well as being able to host more people overall.

Ms Clayton-Jones said the space used by the taproom would remain the same and will always be ancillary to the brewery as, without the brewery, the taproom could not exist.

The council’s planning team advised the owners to apply for a new certificate of lawfulness, to seek confirmation that further extended hours would not constitute a change of use to A4 (drinking establishment).

Double-Barrelled Brewery will also need to get approval from the council’s licensing team, or its committee (if anyone objects), to increase the hours.

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Owned by local couple, Mike and Luci Clayton-Jones, who live in Caversham, Double-Barrelled Brewery opened at the end of 2018.

The Brewery is currently open on Fridays (3pm-8pm) and Saturdays (2pm-8pm), as of September 8, but check the website first as they say these times are changing fairly regularly at the moment.

During lockdown, Double-Barrelled raised £4,258 for the NHS Charities Together Covid-19 appeal by brewing and selling a beer called Applause as a thank you to key workers.

The company has been recognised by the Great Britain Inspirations campaign, which highlights UK businesses, organisations and individuals that have done extraordinary things during the COVID-19 pandemic.