Crafty Devil Cellar, the Windsor Road bar, is calling on the Vale of Glamorgan Council to review the new outdoor seating charges it is levying on businesses.

Starting next month, local hospitality businesses will be charged the following annual fees for placing chairs and tables on the pavement:

- One to two tables with up to eight chairs: £150

- Three to four tables with up to 16 chairs: £300

- Five to 10 tables with up to 40 chairs: £500

- 11 tables or more with over 40 chairs: £750, plus £35 extra for each chair after 40

They were previously charged a flat rate of of £497.50 per three years, meaning every cafe with at least three tables outdoors will have to pay more than before the pandemic.

This fee was suspended during the pandemic.

Retailers will also be charged the following fees for placing products and advertisements outside their businesses:

- £100 for one advertising board per business

- £200 for two advertising boards. No more than 2 advertising boards will be permitted per business.

- Under 5 square metres of goods - £150

- Over 5 square metres of goods - £300

- No outside trading area is to be greater than 10 square metres on the adopted footway.

The policy drew widespread criticism from local business owners and members of the public. It even attracted national press, with BBC One Wales running a story featuring Penarth businesses.

Crafty Devil Cellar will have to pay £500 per annum for their six tables and 12 chairs - more than they were paying per three years previously.

Director Rhys Watkins calls the decision and its timing "absolutely shocking". His bar's revenue in May 2021 was down 34.5% on May 2019 and he says that his business and industry are struggling to survive.

He is calling on the Vale Council to drop the charges or at the very least to delay their implementation until next year. Mr Watkins asked his customers to sign a petition voicing opposition to the charges, which has now been sent to Vale Council leader Neil Moore.

"This has sent ripples through our local community of independent businesses in Penarth and the wider Vale of Glamorgan," he said.

"The policy of charging businesses who have suffered massively over the last 16 months is absolutely shocking[...].

"We are calling on the Vale of Glamorgan Council to at least delay these charges to at least the end of the business rates holiday March 2022.

"If they are not careful, they will not have a high street to manage."

The Welsh Federation for Small Businesses echo these sentiments, and have penned a letter to Vale of Glamorgan Council Leader Neil Moore urging him to reconsider the charges.

"Small hospitality businesses have faced some of the worst disruption of the pandemic and are only just beginning to get back on their feet," said Rob Basini, FSB South Wales Development Manager.

"Whilst these charges might be necessary at some point in the future, now is not the time."

The Vale of Glamorgan Council say the policy is designed "to ensure a fairer and safer use of the highway and greater opportunities for businesses, whilst also ensuring a clearer understanding of what is required from those who apply to place items on the highway asset."

During a scrutiny committee meeting, Deputy Council Leader Lis Burnett insisted that the policy "is not income generation".