Licence conditions enforceable and appropriate To prevent public
Licence conditions – enforceable and appropriate. To prevent public nuisance Institute of licensing Jim Hunter. Training and Qualifications Officer Institute of Licensing Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Aims and Objectives Institute of licensing • How to draft or request conditions that are fit for purpose. • Focus on conditions to prevent public nuisance Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • No member of the public shall be admitted to the licensed site after 2100 hours without good and sufficient reason. • No person shall be admitted to the licensed site who is at that time visibly drunk or under the influence of drugs. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • The designated premises supervisor (DPS) or his nominated deputy, who shall be the holder of a personal licence to sell alcohol, shall be present on the licensed site at all times. • Prior to the sale of alcohol, the designated premises supervisor shall instruct all bar staff in the prevention of sale to anyone who is drunk or under the age of 18 years. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions can be attached to a licence, Institute of licensing • When offered in the operating schedule, • At a hearing, application for the grant or variation, at a review and summary review, • By way of a minor variation, • At a consideration hearing following a closure order, • At an appeal • When there are new mandatory conditions TENS Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • s 18 (2) (a) such conditions as are consistent with the operating schedule. . + Mandatory conditions • Same provision for CPCs • Note slightly different for variations does not state allowed to impose conditions consistent with. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing From s 182 Guidance 10. 9 It is also not acceptable for licensing authorities to simply replicate the wording from an applicant’s operating schedule. A condition should be interpreted in accordance with the applicant’s intention. Conditions should be appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives and easily enforceable. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing This was a problem in 2005 • Licensees did not really have a clue • Applicants for licences were under severe pressures due to the timescales involved • So were the Responsible Authorities • As were the Licensing Officers Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • Proportionate. • Achievable. • Understandable. • Enforceable. • Necessary/appropriate. • Promote the licensing objectives. • Not duplicated in other primary legislation. • Individual and tailored to the premises Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing • Amplified sound from the premises shall not be clearly audible at the boundary of any noise sensitive premises Uttlesford District Council v English Heritage [2007] EWHC 816 (Admin) (available online at: http: //www. bailii. org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/ 2007/816. html) Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing • Amplified sound from the premises shall not be clearly audible at the boundary of any noise sensitive premises • Insufficiently precise. It was amended to ‘music levels should not exceed LAeq 52 d. B over any 15 minute period at a distance of 1 metre from any residential premises’. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing See: Crawley Borough Council v Attenborough [2006] 170 JP 593; [2006] EWHC 1278 (Admin) available online at: http: //www. bailii. org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/ 2006/1278. html Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Extract from Scott Baker L. J. , at paras 6 -7: “It is important that a premises licence and any conditions attached to it should be clear. Not just those with specialised knowledge but also an independent bystander such as a neighbour. As a breach of licence carries criminal sanctions. Everyone must know where they stand after reading the licence and its conditions. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • It not that straight forward. • Think about conditions relating to noise nuisance. . . • “Clearly Audible” creates problems but then understanding the specifics of a condition with maximum set decibel levels has its own problems Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing • Licensee to comply may need a noise monitor • How would a neighbour be able to establish if the condition was being met? Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Take aways To enable the identification of litter. “All packaging used to wrap or cover food or drink from the premises shall be unique to the premises and clearly state the name of the premises which has sold or supplied the food or drink. ” Good condition? Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Take aways To enable litter from the premises to be correctly disposed of. “ A litter patrol must be conducted after the premises has closed. The patrol must look for and pick up any litter relating to their premises in a 50 m radius from their premises, all litter to be suitably disposed of. Good condition? Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Q: When is a condition not a condition? A: When no “Licensable Activities” are taking place? Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing S 136 (a) he carries on or attempts to carry on a licensable activity on or from any premises otherwise than under and in accordance with an authorisation, or (b) he knowingly allows a licensable activity to be so carried on. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Q: When is a condition not a condition? Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Conditions should not duplicate primary legislation. S 182 Guidance 10. 17 So, licensing authorities should not seek to impose fire safety conditions that may duplicate any requirements or prohibitions that could be imposed under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (see Chapter 2). Likewise EPA 1990 Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Conditions Institute of licensing Door supervisors may be used to record entrance and exit of patrons to ensure capacity limits are not breached. Avoid May (Must), should (Shall) & best endeavours! (Will) Licences with over 160 conditions. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
What is Public Nuisance? Institute of licensing Noise Light Litter Noxious smells Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing 2. 34 Public nuisance is given a statutory meaning in many pieces of legislation. It is however not narrowly defined in the 2003 Act and retains its broad common law meaning. It is important to remember that the prevention of public nuisance could therefore include low-level nuisance, perhaps affecting a few people living locally, as well as major disturbance affecting the whole community. It may also include in appropriate circumstances the reduction of the living and working amenity and environment of other persons living and working in the area of the licensed premises. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing R (Hope and Glory Public House Limited) v City of Westminster Magistrates' Court [2011] EWCA Civ 31 http: //www. bailii. org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2011/3 1. html the main condition being that no customer should be permitted to take drink from the premises in an open container after 6 pm. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing Only one person actually suffered a noise nuisance, although she had complained numerous times. Still held to be a “public nuisance” Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing THE QUEEN ON THE APPLICATION OF THE LORD MAYOR AND THE CITIZENS OF WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL Claimant v METROPOLITAN STIPENDIARY MAGISTRATE Defendant and MARC MERRAN Interested Party http: //www. bailii. org/cgibin/markup. cgi? doc=/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/200 8/1202. html&query=movida&method=boolean Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Understandable and achievable conditions Instituteofoflicensing Licensing Institute No food or drinks to be consumed outside the premises "No food or drinks supplied on the premises are to be consumed in the vicinity of the premises. " Delivering Excellence in. Delivering Licensing Excellence in Licensing 29 ©Institute of of Licensing 2012 ©Institute Licensing 2012
Understandable and achievable conditions No new entries (other than staff) after 2. 15 am Instituteofoflicensing Licensing Institute "No person may enter the club after 2. 15 a. m. , other than the staff, who has not already entered the premises that night prior to 2. 15 a. m. . " Delivering Excellence in. Delivering Licensing Excellence in Licensing 30 ©Institute of of Licensing 2012 ©Institute Licensing 2012
Understandable and achievable conditions Instituteofoflicensing Licensing Institute During the winding down period the temp of the music played and its volume to be reduced substantially to the extent that for the last half hour it is possible throughout the premises to have a spoken conversation with another at normal speech level. Delivering Excellence in. Delivering Licensing Excellence in Licensing 31 ©Institute of of Licensing 2012 ©Institute Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing It would be possible to provide for precise limits by reference to decibel levels measured at particular places in the club, or, should a lighting condition be attached, by reference to light measurements taken at particular points by a light meter, but that is not the only way, nor necessarily the best way, of stipulating elements of a winding down period. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Public Nuisance Institute of licensing It should be stated that where a district judge or Magistrates' Court is considering imposing conditions on the grant or variation of a licence it will almost always be good practice for the conditions under consideration to be outlined for debate by the parties. In that way errors of drafting can be identified, as can improvements, as can, most important, consideration of the underlying propositions behind the conditions Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
What is Public Nuisance? Institute of licensing Licensing authorities should be aware of the need to avoid inappropriate or disproportionate measures that could deter events that are valuable to the community, such as live music. Noise limiters, for example, are very expensive to purchase and install and are likely to be a considerable burden for smaller venues. Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
Institute of licensing Jim Hunter jim@instituteoflicensing. org 07970 111401 www. instituteoflicensing. org Delivering Excellence in Licensing ©Institute of Licensing 2012
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