General information
On the 7 February 2005 the Council gained control of new
licensing responsibilities. Under these duties, the Council acts as
the "Licensing Authority" for all relevant premises.
The Council took full control of the new licensing regime
on the 24 November 2005 and all relevant permissions have
been administered by the Council since that date.
The Licensing Act
2003 (external link) aims to modernise the arrangements that
existed for many years in respect of licensing the sale of alcohol,
the provision of public entertainment (including music, dancing,
theatre and cinemas) and the provision of late night refreshment
between 11.00pm and 5.00am.
The Act introduces a single Premises Licence that replaced
separate public entertainment, late night refreshment and liquor
licensing regimes. It also established a separate Personal Licence
for those individuals who are involved in the sale or supply of
alcohol.
The Act is complex and introduced a lot of new terms and phrases
for the licensing process. Use our jargon buster guidance document to
understand these definitions.
The aims of the Act
The Act promotes four key licensing objectives, which are:
- The prevention of crime and disorder
- Public safety
- The prevention of public nuisance
- The protection of children from harm
Each of the objectives is of equal importance and all applicants
must be able to demonstrate that they have addressed each of the
licensing objectives in relation to their application.
In addition to the Act, the Secretary of State has produced a
formal guidance (external link) document made under Section 182
of the Act. The guidance, which was revised on 22 June 2006,
provides additional information on the practical implications of
the Act.
Regulations
The Government has published a series of
Licensing Act 2003 Regulations (external link) that set out the
procedural requirements for hearings, applications and other
related matters.
More information
Information from the Government on liquor & entertainment
licensing can be obtained from the Department
for Culture, Media and Sport (external link).
More information on alcohol related crime is available from the
Home Office (external link) and
the Prime Minister's
Strategy Unit (external link)