Fears have been raised that a Birmingham suburb will become " another Broad Street" as most of the pubs in the local centre have applied for extended hours.

At least five pubs in Moseley are urging licensing officials to extend their hours to up to 2am at the weekends.

Some residents have called on the council to block the applications, as they believe an increase in boozy " strangers" in the district will boost anti-social behaviour.

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Concerns have also been raised that late drinking will transform the residential neighbourhood into a bar and nightclub district similar to Birmingham's Broad Street.

However, the bar owners claim that responsible drinkers come to Moseley, which boasts one of the most vibrant socialising scenes in Birmingham outside of the city centre.

Among the bars applying for extended hours are O'Neill's, The Elizabeth of York, The Prince of Wales, The Cross Cafe Bar and The Village.

Scores of pubs across the city are expected to apply for extended opening as they secure new licences introduced by the Government under the terms of the Licensing Act.

All pubs, clubs, restaurants and places selling hot food after 11pm must apply for the new licences by August 6 or risk closure when they come into force from November.

Parkesh Sidhu, owner of the The Cross Cafe Bar on Alcester Road, said: "Moseley is a young place and it is only a minority of older people who are against the pubs opening late.

"We are one of the most welcoming pubs in the city and we have never had a fight, so I do not know how anyone can say that there will be more trouble if we have our licensing hours extended.

"Moseley is a very civilised area, but we will make sure that we do not get gangs of lads coming up from Kings Heath if we are given a late licence."

Colin Dolby, duty manager at O'Neill's, said: "We are one of the quietest pubs in Moseley in terms of trouble."

Under the terms of the Licensing Act 2003, extended hours will be permitted unless police or local residents object. If there are objections, the matter must be decided by a council committee.

Fiona Adams, secretary of the Moseley Society heritage group, has urged local residents to contact the group if they are against their local pub having extended hours.

She said: "We are trying to prevent Moseley from becoming another Broad Street.

"If you come here on a Friday or Saturday, it feels like there are a lot of strangers who leave the pubs and cause anti-social behaviour. There is some nasty things that go on when people get drunk.

"It is a vibrant place but we do not want it to be vibrant at 2am in the morning.

"There are a lot of people in the area who have paid a lot of money for their houses who want to enjoy their lives. People are really fed up about this issue."

An application by The Goose at The Fighting Cocks in the centre of Moseley Village to open until 1am at weekends was recently turned down after local residents objected about rowdy behaviour by customers leaving the premises. The Moseley Forum residents' group has lodged an official objection to the Prince of Wales' application.

Natalie Higgins Planning Spokesperson on the forum said the "character of the area will be irreparably changed and people will not want to live in the village centre".