Premises licence
| Licence summary |
To provide late-night refreshments and regulated entertainment, and sell alcohol, you need a licence from us as long as you are in England and Wales. Advice and guidance. |
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| Eligibility Criteria |
Any of the following may apply for a premises licence:
Applicants must not be under 18 years of age. |
| Regulation Summary | |
| Application Evaluation Process |
Applications must be sent to the licensing authority for the area where the premises are located. Applications must be made on the prescribed forms and be accompanied by an operating schedule, a plan of the premises and if the sale of alcohol will be a licensable activity we will also need a form of consent from the premises supervisor. An application fee, based on the premises rateable value, is payable at the time of application. There is also an annual fee to be paid on the anniversary of the licence being issued. An operating schedule will include details of:
You are required to advertise the application within ten working days of the full application being made to us. If the application is made in writing you should also give a copy of the application to any other person or responsible body, eg the local authority, chief police officer or fire and rescue authority. The Local Authority - Environmental Health and Planning link gives contact details for the responsible authorities. The licensing authority may grant the application, which may be subject to conditions. Valid representations are made in respect of the application based on any of the four licensing objectives:
If a hearing is held the licence can be granted or granted subject to additional conditions, licensable activities listed in the application can be excluded or the application can be refused. After the hearing we will serve a notice of the decision on you and any person who has made relevant representations (ie representations that were not deemed frivolous or vexatious) and the chief of police. Applications can also be made to vary or transfer a licence. A hearing may have to be heard if representations are made or conditions relating to a transfer are not met. Other applications that can be made are applications for an interim authority notice following the death, incapacity or insolvency of a licence holder or review applications.
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| Will Tacit Consent apply if I do not hear anything after 28 days? |
Yes. This means that you will be able to act as though your application is granted as long as there have been no valid objections received within the 28 day statutory period. If a valid objection is received you will receive a letter notifying you of this and inviting you to attend the committee hearing giving you at least 10 days notice. Where there is a valid objection the statutory period is extended by a further 28 days to a total of 56 days.
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| Apply online |
Apply for a provisional statement Apply for a Designated Premises Supervisor to be disapplied Tell us about a minor change to your premises Apply to vary your premises licence Apply to transfer your premises licence Notify us of an interest in premises under section 178 Tell us about a change to your existing interim authority notice Tell us about a change to your existing consent to transfer Notify us of your request to be removed as designated premises supervisor Tell us about a change to your existing consent to be designated |
| Apply by post |
If you wish to apply by post click here to download relevant form |
| Failed Application Redress |
Please contact us in the first instance. If an application for a licence is refused you can appeal. Appeals are made to a Magistrates' court within 21 days of notice of the decision.
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| Licence Holder Redress |
Please contact us in the first instance. If an application is made by the chief police officer, as detailed below, and interim steps are taken by the licensing authority you may make representations. A hearing must be held within 48 hours of your representations. A licence holder may appeal against any conditions attached to a licence, a decision to reject a variation application, a decision to reject a transfer application or a decision to exclude an activity or person as premises supervisor. Appeals are made to a Magistrates' court within 21 days of the date of the letter we sent to notify you of the decision. Please see details below: Northampton Magistrates Court Tel:01604 497000
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| Consumer Complaint |
If you are not happy with the service you should complain to the person who first dealt with the matter. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive at this stage you should then complain to the Head of Environmental Services giving details of your complaint. You can take the complaint a step further by writing to the Executive Director who will arrange for it to be investigated. You should receive a reply within 10 days, but if the matter is complex, or other organisations need to be contacted, it may take longer. But we will still let you know what action is being taken. You should give all the details of your complaint and say what you have done to try to get it put right. If you are still not happy after using our own complaints procedure you can complain to the Local government Ombudsman. A free booklet is available from all council offices.
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| Other redress |
An interested party or responsible authority may ask us apply to the licensing authority to review the premises licence. A hearing will be held by the licensing authority. Appeals are made to a Magistrates' court within 21 days of being notified of the decision. The chief police officer for the police area where the premises are located can apply to the licensing authority for a review of the licence if the premises are licensed to sell alcohol by retail and a senior officer has given a certificate that they are of the opinion that the premises are associated with either serious crime or disorder or both. A hearing will be held and the licence holder and other interested parties may make representations. A chief police officer can give a notice to us if they believe that the transfer of a licence to another, under a variation application could undermine crime prevention objectives. Such a notice must be given within 14 days of receiving notification of the application. An interested party or responsible body may make representations in relation to a licence application or request the licensing body to review a licence. An interested party or responsible authority may apply to us to review the premises licence. A hearing will be held by the licensing authority. A chief police officer may make representations to us for a review of the licence if the premises are licensed to sell alcohol by retail and a senior member of the force has given a certificate to state that in their opinion the premises are associated with serious crime, disorder or both. An interested party or relevant authority who made relevant representations may appeal against the granting of a licence or against any condition, variation, licensable activity or premises supervisor decisions. Appeals are made to a Magistrates' court within 21 days of being notified of the decision.
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| Trade Associations | |
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Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union (BECTU) |
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Get help at
Northamptonshire Licensing Partnership
Central Administration Unit
Cedar Drive
Thrapston, Northants, NN14 4LZ
Telephone: 01832 742102
Email: licensingunit@east-northamptonshire.gov.uk
Website: www.northantslicensing.gov.uk