The High Street restaurant wants late night refreshment to 5am and the delivery-only rule dropped. Comments close 9 October, and the council's link is broken.

The McDonald’s at 168-172 Sutton High Street has applied to open around the clock, every day of the week.

The application asks for late night refreshment until 5am instead of 3am, and for the removal of the rule that currently allows deliveries only in the small hours. Together, the form says, that would enable “the restaurant to remain open 24/7 for eat in, takeaway and delivery”.

Comments close on 9 October 2026.

The application was signed on 11 September by Elaine Rayner of Shoosmiths LLP, solicitors acting for the licence holder, and published by the council the same day.

What the licence allows now, and what is being asked

The premises licence is 25/01888/LAPREM. The form sets out the current position in one sentence:

The Premises Licence currently authorises Late Night Refreshment to take place at the premises from 23:00 until 03:00 every day but via delivery orders only from 02:00-03:00 every day.

The variation asks for three things:

  • late night refreshment from 23:00 until 05:00 every day, an extra two hours
  • removal of the “delivery only” restriction in the section of the licence covering the times licensable activities are authorised
  • removal of condition 15 of Annex 2, which the form quotes as “All orders for delivery collection shall be given to the delivery drivers via the front door of the premises”

The hours the premises would be open to the public are given as 05:00 to 05:00, seven days a week. That is 24 hours.

The application also updates the plans attached to the licence to show a changed layout “following a refurbishment”. The ground floor plan submitted with it is dated August 2026 and labels the licensable activity as the sale of hot food and drink after 11pm.

Chart comparing the McDonald's licence at 168-172 Sutton High Street now and as proposed: late night refreshment currently 11pm to 3am with delivery only from 2am to 3am, proposed 11pm to 5am with no delivery-only restriction and the premises open to the public 24 hours

No alcohol is involved. The form notes that “no McDonald’s restaurant within the United Kingdom serves alcohol and further none of our drinks or food are served to customers in glass receptacles”.

Who is applying

The applicant is Flywheel Operations Ltd, company number 14938053, a private limited company incorporated on 15 June 2023 and registered at an address in North Finchley. Companies House records its business as “unlicensed restaurants and cafes” (Companies House).

The premises has a non-domestic rateable value of £144,000. The restaurant holds a food hygiene rating of 5, its last inspection recorded on 21 October 2025 (Food Standards Agency).

What the company is offering

The form lists the steps the applicant says it will take on each of the four licensing objectives. On crime and disorder:

  • CCTV recording clear images that permit identification, kept for at least 31 days
  • recordings displaying the correct time and date, and copies given to police or council officers on request
  • the system regularly serviced by qualified technicians, with signage at the entrance
  • Staffsafe, a remote monitoring system allowing visual surveillance and audio contact with staff and customers

On public nuisance, which is the objective most likely to concern anyone living nearby:

  • a manager monitoring the area immediately outside the premises during licensable hours, and encouraging customers to leave promptly and quietly
  • staff litter patrols picking up discarded McDonald’s packaging “or any other litter” outside the premises
  • self-closing entrance and exit doors
  • the rear door not used between midnight and 5am, except in an emergency or for fire evacuation

On children, the form says McDonald’s “do not anticipate that unaccompanied children will use the restaurant in the extended hour’s period covered by this licensing application”.

Sutton Council lists the application on its current applications page and turns the premises name into a link to the document. That link points at the file’s name rather than at the file, so clicking it goes nowhere.

This is the second time in five weeks. The same fault applies to The Ceylon Dining in Cheam, which we reported on 2 September and which is still broken (our earlier report).

The McDonald’s document is published. It is the 15-page application form and plan, and it sits at this address on sutton.gov.uk.

That matters, because the law gives residents the right to comment and the council removes each application from the page as soon as its deadline passes.

What it means for you

If you live or work near the northern end of the High Street, this is the window to say something. Comments close on 9 October 2026.

A representation has to be in writing, has to include your full postal address, and has to be about the likely effect on one of the four licensing objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, and the protection of children from harm. The council says representations it considers vexatious, frivolous or repetitious will not be counted, and that your representation is passed to the applicant in full.

If valid representations are received, a Licensing Committee hearing decides the application and everyone who commented is invited. If none are received, the variation is granted as applied for.

Details of how to comment are on the council’s current applications page. Two other Sutton applications are open at the same time, and our licence applications roundup has their deadlines.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Sutton McDonald’s going 24 hours?

It has applied to. The variation seeks late night refreshment from 11pm to 5am every day, removal of the delivery-only restriction, and public opening hours of 5am to 5am, which is 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Nothing changes unless the council grants it. Comments close on 9 October 2026.

Which McDonald’s is it?

The restaurant at 168-172 High Street, Sutton SM1 1NL, premises licence 25/01888/LAPREM. The applicant is Flywheel Operations Ltd, company number 14938053.

How do I object or comment?

In writing to Sutton Council, with your full postal address, by 9 October 2026. Your comment has to relate to one of the four licensing objectives: prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, prevention of public nuisance, or protection of children from harm. The council passes your representation to the applicant in full, and it is sent to a Licensing Committee hearing if it is valid.

Where can I read the application?

At this address on sutton.gov.uk. The link on the council’s own applications page does not work, because it points at the file’s name instead of the file.

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