After Dark plan approved for Westminster

Admin

November 21, 2025
3 min read

After Dark plan approved for Westminster

Westminster Council has approved a new Westminster After Dark Plan to make the city more “lively, safe, and welcoming after dark.” The strategy covers the hours between 6pm and 6am, aiming to “boost dining, shopping, theatre, and nightlife across central London.”

It aims to support the borough’s “thriving” hospitality and entertainment scene while creating new areas for evening and late-night activity across the city. In addition, it will set out measures towards protecting cultural spaces, safeguarding LGBTQ+ venues, and strengthening partnerships with local businesses and communities.

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The council says it has identified three new areas as “After Dark Opportunity Areas.” These are Oxford Street, Strand, and Victoria, “each with its own character and potential.” In these areas, the councils says it wants to “planning, licensing and public realm policies together to help build a safe and well-managed night-time offer, supplementing the world-leading districts of Soho, Leicester Square, and Covent Garden.”

The council says it is working closely with the community and local business owners through a newly established LGBTQ+ Venues forum to “ensure these important spaces are preserved.”

It is also working on “strengthening and diversifying the night-time offer with new activations” including the Rupert Street evening market. Its goal is to encourage new music and performance venues like the Blue Note Jazz Club, and create opportunities for “family-friendly events spaces through Council’s Libraries and Archives Services.”

Measures to improve safety will include the expansion of CCTV coverage and an increase in joint police and council patrols to “tackle anti-social behaviour more effectively.”

To shape the Westminster After Dark Plan, the council says it “ran an extensive engagement programme to gather views from residents, businesses and key partners.” Over 12,000 people visited the online consultation hub. Focus groups were also held with the Metropolitan Police, TfL, and eight Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) “to ensure the plan reflects the needs and concerns of local workers and businesses.”

For more updates on Westminster, visit EyeOnLondon Westminster.