The Cage in Reigate cancels all live music after council noise abatement notice

The Cage, the wine bar on Reigate High Street, has cancelled all live music until further notice after being served with a Noise Abatement Notice by Reigate & Banstead Borough Council.

The notice was served on 5 August by the council’s environmental services team, following complaints about amplified music in the venue’s courtyard. The bar itself remains open and trading.

‘It will not survive’

In a statement shared with Pilgrim Brewery, which owns the bar, The Cage said the situation was “incredibly difficult” and could threaten the future of the venue. Live music has been part of The Cage for 26 years, it said.

Pilgrim Brewery co-owner Adrian Rothera said: “It is an absolute certainty that without live music The Cage will not survive as a hospitality venue; it is only the busy summer months that sustain the business over the winter months.”

The venue said it is licensed to play music in the courtyard until 11pm, seven days a week, but generally hosts bands or DJs once at the weekend over the summer and rarely during the week. After being made aware of a complaint in May, it said, it brought finishing times forward to around 10.30pm and worked with bands and DJs to bring the volume down.

What the council says

Reigate & Banstead Borough Council has said the notice does not prohibit live music, and that cancelling it was the business’s own decision.

Surrey Extra has not seen the notice itself and does not know what noise levels or conditions it sets out.

The petition

A Change.org petition, Save Live Music at The Cage, had passed 9,000 signatures by 10 August.

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