A NIGHTCLUB branded 'unsafe and unmanageable' has been shut down.

McCauley's, in Bolton town centre, has had its licence revoked by Bolton Council after a mass brawl outside the venue last month, the latest in a series of violent incidents at the club.

The council's licensing sub-committee heard yesterday afternoon of reports of serious disorder dating back to 2015, including one in which a victim suffered a fractured eye socket when they were punched in the face and one in which a 17-year-old was grabbed by the neck and thrown to the floor.

Councillors were also told that drug dealing, some of which involved former door staff, had been rife at the Bradshawgate club and that bags of white powder had once been found in the former manager's office.

After deciding to revoke the licence, sub-committee chairman Cllr Martin Donaghy said: "The sub-committee felt that, despite the steps proposed by the licence holder, they had serious concerns about the existing management of the premises and could not rely on assurances given that future incidents of serious disorder would be effectively prevented or managed accordingly."

McCauley's has had its licence temporarily suspended since the large-scale fight at 6.30am on Sunday, May 14, which spilled out into the street after a dispute with door staff.

Police estimated that around 75 people were present at the fight and said there was little or no evidence of door staff making any effort to disperse the crowd or stop the violence.

Three people were arrested following the incident, two for being drunk and disorderly and one for a public order offence. One police officer suffered a minor arm injury during the brawl.

PC Andy Vernon told the town hall meeting yesterday that the licence holder, Lisa Bowyer, had texted him last month saying she intended to continue operating the venue despite its licence being suspended. She apologised for the remark and accepted responsibility for her part in the club's troubles.

Ms Bowyer said she had taken "extreme measures" since the licence was suspended last month to rectify the issues at the club, including hiring a new security firm and health and safety adviser.

She added that she had made "terrible decisions", some of which were down to fear of the drug dealing ring associated with the club and threats made to her family.

PC Vernon told the committee: "You have heard of incidents of violence and disorder, about drug use in the premises and noise complaints. You have heard of unlawful and unprofessional staff and one victim who was just 17 years old.

"This venue has repeatedly failed to promote the licensing objectives. The licensee has failed to act on any of the advice I have given her and then blamed me for not contacting her.

"She has now said steps have been taken to address these issues, but why has it taken over two years since she took over to implement such steps?"

He added that the club's problems could have been prevented by management, but that they ignored advice to introduce a last entry time — instead allowing people in as late as 5am, regardless of how drunk they were.

Cllr Sue Haworth told the representatives of the club: "We have to have confidence that people appointed by you will not be involved in a crime racket and get away with it for a considerable amount of time."

Ms Bowyer said she wanted to assist police in bringing more offenders to justice, adding: "The town is in serious disorder and we all need to stick together to make sure somebody puts their foot down and puts a stop to this. We can ignore it but it's not going to go away unless we do something."