Agenda item

G-A-Y Late, Ground Floor, 5 Goslett Yard, WC2

App

No

Ward/ Cumulative Impact Area

Site Name and Address

Application

Licensing Reference Number

2.

West End Ward / West End Cumulative Impact Area 

G-A-Y Late, Ground Floor, 5 Goslett Yard, WC2

Variation

16/00325/LIPV

 

 

 

Minutes:

Licensing SUB-COMMITTEE No. 4

Thursday 10th March 2016

 

Membership:              Councillor Jean Paul Floru (Chairman), Councillor Heather Acton and Councillor Louise Hyams

 

Legal Adviser: Barry Panto

Policy Officer:  Chris Wroe

Committee Officer:     Andrew Palmer

Presenting Officer:     David Sycamore

 

Relevant Representations:         Metropolitan Police, Environmental Health, one local resident and the Soho Society.

 

Present:  Mr Craig Baylis (Solicitor, on behalf of the Applicant), Mr Jeremy Joseph (Manager), Sgt Richard Bunch (Metropolitan Police), Mr Dave Nevitt (Environmental Health) and Mr Tyler Thorne (local resident).

 

G-A-Y Late, Ground Floor, 5 Goslett Yard, WC2

16/00325/LIPV

 

 

Variation of a Premises Licence, Licensing Act 2003

1.

Hours for Licensable Activities and Opening Hours

 

 

To increase the terminal hour of all licensable activities (apart from Late Night Refreshment) until 04:00 hours on the days following Tuesday – Saturday (with the premises closing at 04.30).

 

To increase the terminal hour for the provision of Late Night Refreshment until 04.30 hours on the days following Tuesday to Saturday. 

 

To amend the commencement hour for the sale of alcohol on Sunday from 12.00 to 10.00.

 

 

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

 

 

Mitchells and Butlers Leisure Retail Limited had agreed to withdraw their objection, subject to the agreement of the additional conditions set out under 2 below.

 

 

 

 

 

The Sub-Committee noted that the application was located within a Cumulative Impact Area.

 

Mr Craig Baylis (Solicitor) addressed the Sub-Committee on behalf of the Applicant. The premises operated under a pre-conversion licence with old conditions which included a restriction of hours and conditions for membership that had originally been obtained to provide for late opening on Sundays. The hours of operation on Bank Holidays and on the Sunday before Bank Holidays had previously been extended through successful applications for Temporary Event Licenses, and the Applicant accordingly sought to embed into the Licence the changes that were being approved every year.  The Applicant was no longer seeking such an extensive variation regarding barriers outside of the premises.

 

Mr Jeremy Joseph (Manager) addressed the Sub-Committee and commented on problems with Somalian gangs in Charing Cross Road and in the Soho area. Mr Joseph was looking for ways to ensure that patrons were safe, and to provide more security for customers leaving the premises, and considered that extended closing time to 04.30 hours would enable the time that customers left the premises to be staggered.

 

Mr Baylis highlighted that no complaints regarding the premises had been made to the Noise Team since May 2013, and suggested that this should be taken into account when considering the application for extended hours.  Mr Baylis considered that the general character of the premises and the way it was operated should also be taken into account when applying policy; and that consideration should be given as to whether the application would add to the cumulative impact. Mr Bayliss suggested that the question should be whether the proposals would conflict with the original reasons for adopting the policy. 

 

Mr Panto commented on the issues relating to policy, and advised the Sub-Committee that there was a clear burden on the Applicant to demonstrate that their applications would not add to cumulative impact so as to justify an exception to the policy. Mr Panto also advised that the policy made a clear assumption that all premises were well managed and that having received no complaints would not be a consideration. The assumption was also that anyone consuming alcohol at these hours would by definition be likely to add to cumulative impact. The Sub-Committee accepted that the character of the premises might be a factor to take into account but only if that character could itself support an assertion that the additional hours would not add to cumulative impact.    

 

Sgt Richard Bunch (Metropolitan Police) advised the Sub-Committee that the Police were wholly opposed to the application on the grounds of cumulative impact and the extended opening to 04:30 hours.  Sgt Bunch reported that over the past 12 months there had been 85 reported crimes in Goslett Yard, of which 51% could be attributed directly to G-A-Y Late.  Over 250 arrests had made in the area since July 2015 to address the problem. The Police were aware that the vast majority of victims of robbery by Somali Gangs had come from the premises late at night, many of whom were intoxicated. Any extension of hours would also impact on the ability to police the area.

 

Sgt Bunch commented on instances of reported crime at the premises, and confirmed that the Police had met with the operator twice since the beginning of the year, and were making progress in working together to reduce crime figures and to return lost property.

 

Mr Nevitt maintained the objection by Environmental Health, as the principle of granting the application within a Cumulative Impact Area would be against policy. Environmental Health also saw no reason why the application was an exception to policy, and considered that approval could have a negative impact on local residents and invite similar applications from other premises in the area. 

Mr Nevitt also expressed concerns on the proposal to extend the time of last entry, as customers could have had time to drink more alcohol before entering the premises and be noisier while queuing outside.

 

Mr Nevitt expressed concern that the barriers placed outside the premises could obstruct the public highway, as the existing gap was already narrow due to the adjacent ongoing works.  Mr Joseph commented that barriers were considered to be the best way to manage people queueing to enter the premises from 23:00 hours, and informed the Sub-Committee that the area outside the premises was supervised by three security staff, with an additional member of staff inside. The smoking area had also been placed near the front door so it could be managed.

 

Mr Baylis confirmed that the Applicant would be willing to withdraw the proposal to remove condition 26, and keep the last entry at 01:00 hours (on the day following Sundays) with the exception of Sundays before Bank Holidays and the annual Gay Pride event.

 

Mr Thorne addressed the Sub-Committee as a local resident, and stated that his main concerns were over the proposal to extend the terminal hour to 04:00 hours.  Mr Thorne informed the Sub-Committee that his property was situated near to the staff entrance, and that he had complained directly to the premises about noise being caused by staff.  Mr Joseph confirmed that he had been working with Mr Thorne to make sure there were no further problems, and that staff now only exited the premises through the main entrance.  A member of security also now waited outside to ensure that staff left quietly.

 

The Sub-Committee gave careful consideration to both the written representations and to the points made at the hearing, and granted the application in part, with conditions.  In determining the application, the Sub-Committee acknowledged that decisions had to be made in line with Westminster’s existing policy.

 

The Sub-Committee agreed to the removal of conditions 23 and 24, as requested, and agreed that condition 26 would be amended to provide that there will be no entry to the premises after 01:00 hours except for Sundays before Bank Holidays and the Sunday of the Gay Pride Festival.

 

The Sub-Committee refused the application for a general extension of hours to 4:00 and 4:30 opening hours, with the exception of the Saturday of the annual Gay Pride Festival upon which dates permission would be granted (with extended hours for the sale of alcohol applying to 04.00 on the Sunday morning and for the provision of late night refreshment applying to 04.30 on the Sunday morning). The reason for the exception was that there were already a great number of additional people in the area. At other times, it was not considered that the applicant had provided any justification as to why the additional hours would not add to cumulative impact and this was especially so in view of the evidence provided by the police about crime in the immediate area of the premises. The character of the premises, the way that the premises was managed and the clientele that it attracted were not relevant in this case.

 

The full set of conditions is set out below. 

 

2.

Conditions being varied, added or removed

 

 

·         To remove conditions 23, 24, 25 and 26.

·         Seasonal variations to permit the premises to remain open longer prior to bank holidays and British Summer Time.

·         Add other conditions and change the registered office address of the holder.

 

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

 

 

Several conditions and changes were proposed:

·         Withdrawal of the request to remove condition 25.

·         Withdrawal of the request to remove condition 26 apart from Sundays before bank holidays and the Sunday of the Gay Pride week-end.

·         That SIA registered door staff will arrange barriers on the street to ensure that queues of patrons waiting to enter the premises and smokers are kept within the barriers and do not cause obstruction on the road or pavement to Goslett Yard.

·         That the external smoking area to close at 03.30 hours.

 

Conditions had also been proposed following discussions between the applicant and one of the objectors:

 

1.    The license 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.

 

2.    Queuing outside the premises shall be restricted to a designated area located behind the barriers erected for this purpose.

 

3.    Patrons permitted to temporarily leave and re-enter the premises to smoke shall be restricted to a designated smoking area behind the barriers erected for this purpose.

 

 

Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):

 

 

The Sub-Committee granted the application for the variation, addition and removal of conditions as indicated above.  (See reasons for decision in Section 1).

 

The full set of conditions is set out below.

 

 

 

Conditions attached to the Licence

Mandatory Conditions

 

1.         No supply of alcohol may be made at a time when there is no designated premises supervisor in respect of this licence.

 

2.         No supply of alcohol may be made at a time when the designated premises supervisor does not hold a personal licence or the personal licence is suspended.

 

3.         Every supply of alcohol under this licence must be made or authorised by a person who holds a personal licence.

 

4.        (1)         The responsible person must ensure that staff on relevant premises do not carry out, arrange or participate in any irresponsible promotions in relation to the premises.

 

(2)        In this paragraph, an irresponsible promotion means any one or more of the following activities, or substantially similar activities, carried on for the purpose of encouraging the sale or supply of alcohol for consumption on the premises—

 

(a)        games or other activities which require or encourage, or are designed to require or encourage, individuals to;

 

(i)         drink a quantity of alcohol within a time limit (other than to drink alcohol sold or supplied on the premises before the cessation of the period in which the responsible person is authorised to sell or supply alcohol), or

(ii)        drink as much alcohol as possible (whether within a time limit or otherwise);

 

(b)        provision of unlimited or unspecified quantities of alcohol free or for a fixed or discounted fee to the public or to a group defined by a particular characteristic in a manner which carries a significant risk of undermining a licensing objective;

 

(c)        provision of free or discounted alcohol or any other thing as a prize to encourage or reward the purchase and consumption of alcohol over a period of 24 hours or less in a manner which carries a significant risk of undermining a licensing objective;

 

(d)        selling or supplying alcohol in association with promotional posters or flyers on, or in the vicinity of, the premises which can reasonably be considered to condone, encourage or glamorise anti-social behaviour or to refer to the effects of drunkenness in any favourable manner;

 

 (e)       dispensing alcohol directly by one person into the mouth of another (other than where that other person is unable to drink without assistance by reason of a disability).

 

5.         The responsible person must ensure that free potable water is provided on request to customers where it is reasonably available.

 

6.        (1)         The premises licence holder or club premises certificate holder must ensure that an age verification policy is adopted in respect of the premises in relation to the sale or supply of alcohol.

 

(2)        The designated premises supervisor in relation to the premises licence must ensure that the supply of alcohol at the premises is carried on in accordance with the age verification policy.

 

(3)        The policy must require individuals who appear to the responsible person to be under 18 years of age (or such older age as may be specified in the policy) to produce on request, before being served alcohol, identification bearing their photograph, date of birth and either—

 (a)       a holographic mark, or

 (b)       an ultraviolet feature.

 

7.         The responsible person must ensure that—

(a)        where any of the following alcoholic drinks is sold or supplied for consumption on the premises (other than alcoholic drinks sold or supplied having been made up in advance ready for sale or supply in a securely closed container) it is available to customers in the following measures—

            (i)         beer or cider: ½ pint;  

(ii)        gin, rum, vodka or whisky: 25 ml or 35 ml; and

                        (iii)       still wine in a glass: 125 ml;

 

(b)        these measures are displayed in a menu, price list or other printed material which is available to customers on the premises; and

 

(c)        where a customer does not in relation to a sale of alcohol specify the quantity of alcohol to be sold, the customer is made aware that these measures are available.

 

A responsible person in relation to a licensed premises means the holder of the premise licence in respect of the premises, the designated premises supervisor (if any) or any individual aged 18 or over who is authorised by either the licence holder or designated premises supervisor.  For premises with a club premises certificate, any member or officer of the club present on the premises in a capacity that which enables him to prevent the supply of alcohol.

 

8(i)       A relevant person shall ensure that no alcohol is sold or supplied for consumption on or off the premises for a price which is less than the permitted price.

 

8(ii)      For the purposes of the condition set out in paragraph 8(i) above -

 

(a)        "duty" is to be construed in accordance with the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979;

 

(b)        "permitted price" is the price found by applying the formula -

 

P = D+(DxV)

 

Where -

           

(i)         P is the permitted price,

(ii)        D is the amount of duty chargeable in relation to the alcohol as if the duty were charged on the date of the sale or supply of the alcohol, and

(iii)       V is the rate of value added tax chargeable in relation to the alcohol as if the value added tax were charged on the date of the sale or supply of the alcohol;

 

(c)        "relevant person" means, in relation to premises in respect of which there is in force a premises licence -

                       

(i)         the holder of the premises licence,

(ii)        the designated premises supervisor (if any) in respect of such a licence, or

(iii)       the personal licence holder who makes or authorises a supply of    alcohol under such a licence;

 

(d)        "relevant person" means, in relation to premises in respect of which there is in force a club premises certificate, any member or officer of the club present on the premises in a capacity which enables the member or officer to prevent the supply in question; and

 

(e)        "value added tax" means value added tax charged in accordance with the Value Added Tax Act 1994.

 

8(iii).    Where the permitted price given by Paragraph 8(ii)(b) above would (apart from this paragraph) not be a whole number of pennies, the price given by that sub-paragraph shall be taken to be the price actually given by that sub-paragraph rounded up to the nearest penny.

 

8(iv).   (1)        Sub-paragraph 8(iv)(2) below applies where the permitted price given by Paragraph 8(ii)(b) above on a day ("the first day") would be different from the permitted price on the next day ("the second day") as a result of a change to the rate of duty or value added tax.

(2)        The permitted price which would apply on the first day applies to sales or supplies of alcohol which take place before the expiry of the period of 14 days beginning on the second day.

 

Conditions reproducing the effect of conditions subject to which the relevant existing licences have effect.

9.         This licence is subject to all the former Rules of Management for Places of Public Entertainment licensed by Westminster City Council, in force from 4 September 1998 and incorporating amendments agreed by the Council on 25 October 1999, 30 June 2000, 16 January 2001 and 1 October 2001

 

10.        On New Year's Eve the premises can remain open for the purpose of providing regulated entertainment from the time when the provision of regulated entertainment must otherwise cease on New Year's Eve to the time when regulated entertainment can commence on New Year's Day (or until midnight on New Year's Eve where no regulated entertainment takes place on New Year's Day).

11.         The number of people accommodated at any one time (excluding staff) shall not exceed 300.

12.         Substantial food and suitable non-intoxicating beverages, including drinking water shall be available throughout permitted hours in all parts of the premises where intoxicating liquor is sold or supplied.

13.          There shall be no striptease or nudity, and all persons shall be decently attired at all times, except when the premises are operating under the authority of a Sexual Entertainment Venue licence. 

14.      No payment to be made by or on behalf of the premises for distribution of flyers or            tickets within public areas in the Licensing Districts of Westminster.

15.        No person under fourteen shall be in the bar of the licensed premises during the permitted hours unless one of the following applies:

(a)       He is the child of the holder of the premises licence.

(b)          He resides in the premises, but is not employed there.

(c)          He is in the bar solely for the purpose of passing to or from some part of the premises which is not a bar and to or from which there is no other convenient means of access or egress,

(d)          The bar is in railway refreshment rooms or other premises constructed, fitted and intended to be used bona fide for any purpose to which the holding of the licence is ancillary.

16.        If any entertainment is provided for children or if an entertainment is provided at which the majority of persons attending are children, then, if the number of children attending the entertainment exceeds 100, it shall be the duty of the holder of the premises licence:

(a)          to station and keep stationed wherever necessary a sufficient number of adult attendants, properly instructed as to their duties, to prevent more children or other persons being admitted to the building, or to any part thereof, than the building or part can properly accommodate,

(b)          to control the movement of the children and other persons admitted while entering and leaving the building or any part thereof, and

(c)          to take all other reasonable precautions for the safety of the children.

17.    The terminal hour for late night refreshment on New Year's Eve is extended to 05:00 on New Year's Day. On the week-end of the Gay Pride Festival, the terminal hour for the provision of late night refreshment is extended to 04.30 on the Sunday morning.

 

Annex 2 — Conditions consistent with the operating Schedule

 

18.       The premises shall install and maintain a comprehensive CCTV system as per the minimum requirements of the Westminster Police Licensing Team. All entry and exit points will be covered enabling frontal identification of every person entering in any light condition. The CCTV system shall continually record whilst the premises is open for licensable activities and during all times when customers remain on the premises. All recordings shall be stored for a minimum period of 31 days with date and time stamping. Viewing of recordings shall be made available immediately upon the request of Police or authorised officer throughout the entire 31 day period. 

19.       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.  This staff member must be able to provide a Police or authorised council officer copies of recent CCTV images or data with the absolute minimum of delay when requested. 

 

20.       An incident log shall be kept at the premises, and made available on request to an authorised officer of the City Council or the Police, which will record the following:

(a)           all crimes reported to the venue

(b)          all ejections of patrons

(c)           any complaints received

(d)          any incidents of disorder

(e)          all seizures of drugs or offensive weapons

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

(g)           any refusal of the sale of alcohol

(h)          any visit by a relevant authority or emergency service.

 

21.       Admission for or by members shall be gained by use of a police approved scan system.

 

22.       There is to be no entry to the premises after 01:00 on Sundays except for Sundays immediately preceding a bank holiday and the Sunday when the Gay Pride Festival takes place.

Permitted hours for the sale of alcohol

23.       (a)     Subject to the following paragraphs, the permitted hours on weekdays shall           commence at 10.00 and extend until 03.00 on the morning following except           that -

(i)            the permitted hours shall end at 00.00 midnight on any day on which music and dancing is not provided after midnight; and

(ii)          on any day that music and dancing end between 00.00 midnight and 03.00 the permitted hours shall end when the music and dancing end

(b)     In relation to the morning on which summer time begins, paragraph (a) of this condition shall have effect with the substitution of references to 04.00 for references to 03.00.

(c)     On Sunday the permitted hours shall commence at 12:00 and extend until 03:00 on the following day, with the exception of the Sunday of the Gay Pride Festival when the permitted hours shall extend to 04.00 on the Sunday morning.

(d)     The sale of alcohol must be ancillary to the use of the premises for music and dancing and substantial refreshment.

(e)     The permitted hours on New Year's Eve will extend to the start of permitted hours on the following day.

NOTE - The above restrictions do not prohibit:

(a)     during the first thirty minutes after the above hours the consumption of the alcohol on the premises;

 

(b)          during the first twenty minutes after the above hours, the taking of the alcohol from the premises unless the alcohol is supplied or taken in an open vessel;

 

(c)           the sale or supply of alcohol to or the consumption of alcohol by any person residing in the licensed premises;

 

(d)          the ordering of alcohol to be consumed off the premises, or the despatch by the vendor of the alcohol so ordered; the sale of alcohol to a trader or registered club for the purposes of the trade or club;

(e)     the sale or supply of alcohol to any canteen or mess, being a canteen in which the sale or supply of alcohol is carried out under the authority of the Secretary of State or an authorised mess of members of her Majesty's naval, military or air forces;

 

(g)     the taking of alcohol from the premises by a person residing there;

 

(h)     the supply of alcohol for consumption on the premises to any private friends of a person residing there who are bona fide entertained by him at his own expense, or the consumption of alcohol by persons so supplied;

 

 (i)     the supply of alcohol for consumption on the premises to persons employed there for the purposes of the business carried on by the holder of the licence, or the consumption of liquor so supplied, if the liquor is supplied at the expense of their employer or of the person carrying on or in charge of the business on the premises.

 

(i)             In this condition, any reference to a person residing in the premises shall be construed as including a person not residing there but carrying on or in charge of the business on the premises.

 

24.       The license 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.

 

25.       Queuing outside the premises shall be restricted to a designated area located behind the barriers erected for this purpose.

 

26.       Patrons permitted to temporarily leave and re-enter the premises to smoke shall be restricted to a designated smoking area behind the barriers erected for this purpose.

 

 

 

 

 

Supporting documents: