Store Owner Faces Licence Review Over Illegal Worker

The owner of a Reading shop is facing a licence review after an Afghan man who entered the UK illegally was found working behind the counter.

Reading Express is a convenience store on Oxford Road, within walking distance of the town centre.

The shop holds an alcohol licence (6am-11pm) under designated premises supervisor Ravindar Singh Arora.

Council licensing officer Anthony Chawama says the man entered the UK in May 2018 with no documents, had an asylum claim rejected in July 2020, then appealed and is awaiting a decision on his immigration status.

He was discovered serving customers during an inspection by council licensing officers and Home Office immigration enforcement officers on Wednesday, March 11. The report says the man told officers he was only assisting and staying in the flat above the shop; Mr Arora said he was helping that day because his wife had a hospital appointment after an asthma attack.

Because he has no right to work, Mr Chawama applied for the store's licence to be reviewed.

Police licensing officer PC Declan Smyth supports the review and says a test purchase on 22 August 2025 recorded a sale of alcohol to a 16-year-old with no age verification, prompting enforcement. He also says right-to-work checks were not being carried out.

A council licensing applications sub-committee will meet on Thursday, June 11 to decide; councillors can temporarily suspend or revoke the licence.

Reading Express was previously called Anrish Stores.

James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter