Agenda item

To consider an application by BCP Council Environmental Health for the review of the premises licence for the premises known as ‘The Governor’, 364 Lymington Road, Highcliffe, BH23 5EY.

 

This matter is brought before the Licensing Sub-Committee for consideration.

Present:

 

BCP Council:

Sarah Rogers – Principal Licensing Officer

Mike Forster – Legal Advisor to the Sub-Committee (Barrister from 12A College Place)

Louise Smith – Clerk to the Sub-Committee

 

The Chair made introductions and explained the procedure for the hearing, which was agreed by all parties.

 

The Principal Licensing Officer presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'A' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

 

The Licensing Sub-Committee were asked to consider an application by BCP Council Environmental Health for the review of the premises licence as they could demonstrate that the premises were not upholding the prevention of public nuisance licensing objective.  The Sub-Committee were also asked to consider the additional information provided by the Environmental Health Officer which was published as a supplementary to the report and appendices.

 

Dorset Police and BCP Council Licensing Authority had made representations in support of the review in addition to 4 other persons.  A total of 8 representations had been received in support of the review.

 

The following persons attended the hearing and addressed the Sub- Committee to expand on the points made in their written submissions:

 

Applicant:

Andrew Hill – Environmental Health Officer

 

Other Persons supporting review:

Ellie King – BCP Licensing Officer

Sgt Gosling – Dorset Police

 

Despite being invited, there was no representation from the premises.

 

The Sub Committee asked various questions of all parties present and was grateful for the responses received. All parties had the opportunity to ask questions. All parties were invited to sum up before the Sub-Committee retired to make its decision. Before concluding the hearing, the Legal Advisor advised all parties of the right of appeal.

 

Decision:

 

RESOLVED that having considered the application to review the premises licence for the premises known as ‘The Governor, 364 Lymington Road, Highcliffe BH23 5EY, the Sub-Committee has decided that it is necessary to impose conditions on the premises licence on the grounds that the premises are not upholding the prevention of crime and disorder, public nuisance, and public safety licensing objectives, and the imposition of conditions will promote these objectives.

 

Voting – 2 For, 1 Against.

 

Reasons for decision:

 

The Sub-Committee gave detailed consideration to all of the information which had been submitted before the hearing and contained in the report for Agenda Item 5, in particular the written and oral evidence provided by Mr Andrew Hill BCP Environmental Health, Sergeant Gosling of Dorset Police, as well as the verbal submissions made at the hearing by Louise Busfield on behalf of Dorset Police Licensing, by Sarah Rogers who presented the report, and Ellie King a licensing officer who gave evidence in support of the review.  It has also given careful consideration to the written representations from local residents. The current Premises Licence holder Syeda Ruzina Khatun, did not attend the meeting and did not make any representations.

 

In determining the review, the Sub-Committee considered the options available as set out in the recommendations of the report and the Licensing Act 2003 as well as the Guidance by the Secretary of State made under section 182 of that Act as well as relevant policy. 

 

The Sub-Committee’s decision is based upon consideration of the promotion of the four Licensing Objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, and the protection of children from harm. The Sub-Committee acknowledged that it was only able to take into account matters directly relevant to the licensing objectives in respect of the operation of the premises licence.

 

The Sub-Committee concluded that the premises had failed to uphold the licensing objectives, in particular the prevention of public nuisance, in that since the transfer of the licence to Ms Khatun and change of DPS following an application on 26.10.23, there was a period during which there were repeated complaints by local residents involving excessive noise, as well as incidents of violence, disorder and anti-social behaviour associated with the venue, until the early hours of the morning on most weekends.  The license holder has failed to engage with a view to negotiating a variation of the licence conditions for the purpose of alleviating problems experienced and in order to promote the licencing objectives.

 

The only substantive communication from the licence holder has been during a telephone conversation when Mr Hill was advised that the intention was to operate as a restaurant providing tapas, and to move away from operation as a traditional vertical drinking establishment.  The premises has not been open when Mr Hall made visits during the day and there have been no recent complaints from neighbours, so it may be that the premises has closed.  However, there has been a recent indication that the premises has re-opened.  The situation has not been confirmed and until the position is regularised, it is necessary to assume that the establishment will continue to operate as previously.

 

Because of the lack of engagement and the failure of the licence holder to attend or make any representations, which is considered to be highly unusual in the circumstances, the Sub-Committee felt that they had no confidence that the premises could promote the licensing objectives of the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, in light of the history of incidents. 

 

The Sub-Committee concluded that revocation of the Licence was not a proportionate response to the issues raised in the review, on the evidence currently available to it.  However, it is necessary that the current conditions of the licence should be varied in order to promote the licencing objectives.

 

Members of the Sub-Committee were asked to consider the following options: -

a)  Modify the conditions of the licence; and/or

b) Exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the license; and / or

c)  Remove the Designated Premises Supervisor; and/or

d)  Suspend the licence for a period not exceeding three months; and/or

e)  Revoke the licence; or

f)  Leave the licence in its current state.

 

 

(f) Leave the licence in its current state.

 

In considering the evidence, representations and verbal submissions made during the hearing, the Licensing Sub-Committee agreed that taking no action would not be a sufficient response to ensure that the licensing objectives are upheld due to the number and nature of reported incidents and the lack of any appropriate response or engagement by the License holder.  The Sub-Committee decided that, at present, only the imposition of conditions was necessary, rather than revocation.

 

 

a)  Modify the conditions of the licence; and/or

 

The Sub-Committee shared the view of the agencies that the imposition of the following conditions was necessary and proportionate in order to promote the licencing objectives and, in particular reduce disturbance to residents in the vicinity.  The Sub-Committee concluded that none of the other available options would proportionately address the reasons for the review and in upholding the Licensing Objectives.

 

Conditions

 

The Sub-Committee decided that the following conditions were necessary:

 

1.             All staff working at the premises concerned with the sale of alcohol shall be trained in accordance with an accredited training scheme on the law relating to prohibited sales, the age verification policy adopted by the premises  and the conditions attaching to the premises licence.  Refresher training shall be provided at least once every 6 months.  A record shall be maintained of all staff training and that record shall be signed by the person receiving the training and the trainer.  The records shall be kept for a minimum of 12 months and made available for inspection by police, licensing or other authorised officers.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of crime and disorder as well as public safety because trained staff will be better able to manage patrons.

 

2.             An incident log shall be kept at the premises. The log shall include the date and time of the incident and the name of the member of staff who has been involved.  and made available on request to an authorised officer of the Council or the Police, which shall record the following:

(a) any complaints received

(b) any incidents of disorder

(c) any faults in the CCTV system / or searching equipment /or scanning equipment

(d) any refusal of the sale of alcohol

(e) any visit by a relevant authority or emergency service

(f) all crimes reported to the venue

(g) all ejections of patrons

(h) all seizures of drugs or offensive weapons

 

This log to be checked on a weekly basis by the DPS of the premises.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of crime and disorder, by ensuring an appropriate record is kept of incidents.

 

3.             Challenge 25, shall be operated at the premises where the only acceptable forms of identification are (recognised photographic identification cards, such as a driving licence or passport I Holographically marked PASS scheme identification cards). Appropriate signage advising customers of the policy shall prominently displayed in the premises.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of crime and disorder, and the protection of children by ensuring that only adults are permitted to drink alcohol in the premises.

 

4.             A CCTV system, shall be installed to cover all entry and exit points enabling frontal identification of every person entering in any light condition. The CCTV system shall continually record and cover areas where alcohol is kept for selection and purchase by the public, whilst the premises is open for licensable activities. It shall operate during all times when customers remain on the premises. All recordings shall be stored for a minimum period of 31days with correct date and time stamping. Recordings shall be made available immediately upon the request of Police or an authorised officer of the council throughout the preceding 31 day period. The CCTV system shall be updated and maintained according to police recommendations.

 

A staff member from the premises who is conversant with the operation of the CCTV system shall be on the premises at all times when the premises are open to the public. This staff member must be able to show a Police or authorised council officer recent data or footage with the absolute minimum of delay when requested.

 

CCTV shall be downloaded on request of the Police or authorised officer of the council. Appropriate signage advising customers of CCTV being in operation, shall be prominently displayed in the premises.

 

A documented check of the CCTV shall be completed weekly to ensure all cameras remain operational and the 31 days storage for recordings is being maintained.

 

This condition is considered appropriate because the presence of CCTV will deter people from engaging in criminal or disorderly behaviour and assist in providing evidence to the police of those who have been involved in such behaviour so that appropriate action can be taken.

 

5.             SIA

 

A minimum of 2 SIA to be employed on Fridays, Saturdays, and any day preceding a Bank Holiday from 20:00 until close and the last customer has dispersed the immediate area

 

All SIA to wear hi viz jackets or vests at all times they are on duty

 

A register of SIA personnel employed on the premises shall be maintained in a legible format and kept on the premises at all times and made available to police upon reasonable request.

 

The register should be completed by the DPS or Duty Manager at the commencement and end of each shift, by each member of security staff.

 

Details recorded to include: Full name, 16 digit SIA badge number, time of commencement and end of duties.

 

The security operative should then sign their name against these details.

 

The premises shall maintain membership of the PubWatch scheme (or any successor scheme); a senior member of staff shall attend all PubWatch meetings unless an emergency arises preventing such attendance and the premises will support PubWatch initiatives.

 

This condition is considered appropriate because the presence of SIA will deter people from engaging in criminal or disorderly behaviour, and will encourage the sharing of information.

 

6.             Risk Assessments

 

If it is intended to show any major sporting event on a television within the premises (other than Snooker or Pool tournaments, golf, motor racing events, athletics competitions or tennis or cricket matches), or to hold any function, special event or live music, the Premises will conduct a written risk assessment to determine whether it is appropriate to deploy door supervisors for a period of time before the event is scheduled to start, during the event and for a period of time after the event is scheduled to end and will deploy door supervisors in accordance with the outcome of the risk assessment. 

 

Such risk assessments will also be conducted at the request of the police in respect of any other event scheduled to take place at the premises. 

 

Copies of all risk assessments shall be retained on the premises for a minimum period of 6 months and shall be made available for inspection by police and other authorised officers on request.

 

This condition is considered appropriate because a risk assessment will enhance public safety ie of customers on occasions when there is a heightened risk of criminal or disorderly behaviour and promote public safety of clients by indicating if appropriate action should be taken.

 

7.             Queues

 

The licence holder shall ensure that any queue to enter the premises which forms outside the premises is orderly and supervised by door staff so as to ensure that there is no public nuisance or obstruction to the public highway.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of crime and disorder, and public nuisance as well as promoting public safety by ensuring that persons gathered near the premises in queues behave in an orderly manner.

 

8.             Noise Report

 

A report shall be submitted detailing the potential for noise from (amplified music and patrons)  at the premises affecting neighbouring noise sensitive properties and residential properties above the premises.

 

The report shall include a detailed scheme of noise mitigation measures to show that nuisance will not be caused to the occupiers of the noise sensitive properties by noise from the licensed premises.

 

The report shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Council through an authorised officer of the Pollution Control Team and all recommended works carried out in full prior to the commencement of any further regulated entertainment.

 

The noise assessment shall be carried out by a suitably qualified acoustic consultant/engineer and shall take into account the provisions of BS4142: 2014. "Method of rating industrial noise affecting mixed residential and industrial areas" and BS 8233: 1999 "Sound Insulation and Noise Insulation for Buildings - Code of Practice". The recommended design criteria for dwellings are as follows: Daytime (07.00 – 23.00) LAeq(16 hours) 35 dB & Noise Rating Curve NR35 in all rooms. Nighttime (23.00 – 07.00) LAeq(8 hours) 30 dB & Noise Rating Curve NR20 to NR25 in bedrooms NP34.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of public nuisance by ensuring that noise emission is reduced to a reasonable level to protect residential neighbours.

 

9.             Noise Limiter

 

A noise limiter shall be fitted to the musical amplification system set at a level determined by and to the satisfaction of an authorised officer of the Environmental Health Service, so as to ensure that no noise nuisance is caused to local residents or businesses. The operational panel of the noise limiter shall then be secured by key or password to the satisfaction of officers from the Environmental Health Service and access shall only be by persons authorised by the Premises Licence holder.

 

The limiter shall not be altered without prior agreement with the Environmental Health Service. No alteration or modification to any existing sound system(s) should be effected without prior knowledge of an authorised Officer of the Environmental Health Service. No additional sound generating equipment shall be used on the premises without being routed through the sound limiter device.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of public nuisance by ensuring that noise emission is reduced to a reasonable level to protect residential neighbours.

 

10.          Noise

 

No noise generated on the premises, or by its associated plant or equipment, shall emanate from the premises nor vibration be transmitted through the structure of the premises which gives rise to a nuisance. This includes noise from the television

 

A lobbied entrance (that is two sets of doors that are set so that one is closed when the other one is open) shall be installed at the premises.

 

All windows and external doors shall be kept closed after (23:00) hours, or at any time when regulated entertainment takes place, except for the immediate access and egress of persons.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of public nuisance by ensuring that noise emission is reduced to a reasonable level to protect residential neighbours.

 

 

11.          Smoking area

 

The premises licence holder shall ensure that any patrons drinking and/or smoking outside the premises do so in an orderly manner and are supervised by staff so as to ensure that there is no public nuisance or obstruction of the public highway.

 

A direct telephone number for the manager at the premises shall be publicly available at all times the premises is open. This telephone number is to be made available to residents and businesses in the vicinity.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of public nuisance by ensuring that noise emission is reduced to a reasonable level to protect residential neighbours, and that there is a clear line of communication in case of problem.

 

12.          That the terminal hour of business be reduced to 23:00 every day of the week.

 

This condition is considered appropriate to promote the prevention of public nuisance by ensuring that noise emission is reduced to a reasonable level to protect residential neighbours.  There has been a history of noise and other nuisance associated with the premises at unsociable hours.

 

The Sub-Committee considered that these conditions were proportionate and necessary in order to prevent disturbance in the neighbourhood late in the evening and in the early hours of the morning.

 

(c) The removal of the Designated Premises Supervisor from the licence:

 

The sub-committee considered that the removal of the DPS is not proportionate at present.

 

(d) Suspension of the Licence:

 

The Sub-Committee considered the suspension of the premises licence to allow a new team to be introduced by the licence holder and a new DPS to be employed.  But the committee consider that suspension would only be effective to promote the licensing objectives if combined with engagement and co-operation from the License holder, which has been entirely absent thus far.

 

(e) Revocation of the Licence

 

The Sub-Committee considered that revocation at this point would be disproportionate.  However, the Sub-Committee issued a warning that in the event of breach of condition and if disturbances of the type set out recur, then consideration is likely to be given to revocation of the License.

 

Right of appeal:

 

An appeal against the review decision may be made to a Magistrates’ Court within 21 days of the appellant beingnotified of the Licensing Authority’s determination on the review. An appeal may be made by the premises licence holder, the Chief Officer of Police and/or any interested person who made relevant representations.