New Jam House for No Saints

Steve Thomas, the Luminar founder who now heads the No Saints cabaret bar/restaurant group, has secured approval to open a site in Cambridge under his Jam House live-music brand.

Work is due to start next month on the former Gala Bingo site in the city, with an opening for the 840-capacity outlet set for next Easter. No Saints is believed to be investing £1m in the venue.

The company acquired the original Jam House venue in Birmingham plus a second in Edinburgh, for a combined £1.7m at the end

of 2010. The business is part-owned by Jools Holland,

the musician and TV presenter, who helped with the launch of the first Jam House in 1999.

A licence application for a No Saints venue at the Cambridge site in Hobson Street was originally rejected after police lodged an objection.

However, a fresh bid was submitted by No Saints' sister company We Are: Dancing, with an extra incentive included, which said the venue could be used for events that benefit the community for free at least twice per month.

No Saints last year re-vealed plans to run 75 outlets and have a £100m turn-over within five years.