RESIDENTS in Southampton fear their district will become nothing more than a crime-ridden drinking den after permission was granted to establish another pub in Portswood Road.

Last week gunshots were fired at The Mitre pub in Portswood Road and residents from Portswood and nearby Highfield fear crime figures and antisocial behaviour will continue to soar.

Central Portswood already has more than 14 establishments where alcohol can be bought. It is a favourite drinking spot for Southampton University students who attend the Highfield campus.

More than 30 people unsuccessfully voiced their opposition to the proposed pub at a Southampton City Council planning meeting.

Residents told planning chiefs that they are regularly kept awake at night by hundreds of drinkers leaving pubs and fast food takeaways in Portswood Road.

Richard Buckle of Abbotts Way in Portswood said: "Our major fear is that the Portswood district will become a major drinking district in the city."

Council leader and Portswood councillor Adrian Vinson said: "The concern is that this might become the last port of call for students on their way back to homes in the area.

"The area already has considerable problems in the evenings with young people congregating."

The successful applicants, Barracuda Group, will turn two vacant units at the Portswood centre opposite the Safeway supermarket in Portswood Road into a pub. It will belong to the company's Smith and Jones chain, of which there are more than 20 across the country.

Stephen Price at Barracuda said: "Smith and Jones is a community high street brand and it slots very quietly into the high street. It is a contemporary, stylish pub. A lot of people confuse it with a restaurant.

"There will be no loud music and we don't have any DJs. We have background music but the loudest noise in the pub is from people speaking. You can stand outside our pubs and hear no sound whatsoever from our premises.

"Quite often we have objections from people who don't understand what we are doing. We fit in with and facilitate communities."