LAST orders is about to be called for the final time at a historic town centre pub. Edward the Confessor in Town Square, Stevenage, will close down on September 4 and its new owners will not use it as a public house. The pub – also known as Ted the Grass

LAST orders is about to be called for the final time at a historic town centre pub.

Edward the Confessor in Town Square, Stevenage, will close down on September 4 and its new owners will not use it as a public house.

The pub - also known as Ted the Grass among other nicknames - is currently keeping reduced opening hours. It now closes at 5pm each day following police concerns about the "amount of disorder and incidents" at the premises which took place mainly in the evenings.

If the owners, Mitchells and Butlers, had not decided to close it down, the police's next step would have been to take its licence to "review and potentially revocation".

A police spokesperson said: "The brewery had decided to sell the pub anyway and we have an agreement with the area manager that should there be a sniff of any kind of disorder between now and when the pub shuts in early September it will cease to trade immediately."

Officers have been called out to 16 incidents at the pub since Christmas, ranging from fights and assault to criminal damage.

Stevenage community team inspector Mark Furnival said: "I am pleased that the decision has been made to close the pub as it has been a premises that has been of concern to us for some time in terms of low level crime and public order.

"I would like to use this case as an example and a warning to all licensees in Stevenage that we will not tolerate constant problems at your premises and that it is your responsibility to make sure that your customers are not drinking too much which fuels much of the disorder that we experience in the town."

Mitchells and Butlers have operated the pub since the town centre was opened by The Queen in 1959.

It had decided to sell the building after reviewing its estates. The pub has been on the market for some time.

A spokesperson said: "A purchaser has now been found and we are currently negotiating contracts but cannot disclose the purchaser's name until the sale is completed.

"We can confirm that the pub will not be sold as a going concern and will close as a licensed premises on September 4.

"We have a very small team working at the pub and we are currently working with the manager to redeploy employees to our other local businesses which include Hollywood Bowl and The Coopers.