Agenda item
19A Craven Road, W2
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App No |
Ward / Cumulative Impact Area |
Site Name and Address |
Application |
Licensing Reference Number |
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1. |
Hyde Park Ward / not in cumulative impact area |
19A Craven Road, W2 |
New Premises Licence |
18/00975/LIPN
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Minutes:
LICENSING SUB-COMMITTEE No. 2
Friday 16th March 2018
Membership: Councillor Tim Mitchell (Chairman), Councillor Julia Alexander and Councillor Karen Scarborough
Legal Adviser: Horatio Chance
Committee Officer: Tristan Fieldsend
Presenting Officers:Simone Murray
Heidi Lawrance
Relevant Representations: The South East Bayswater Residents’ Association and one local resident.
Present: Mr Graham Hopkins and Ms Linda Potter (GT Licensing Consultants, representing the Applicant), Mr and Mrs Velalakan (Applicants), Mr Richard Brown (Solicitor, Citizens Advice Bureau Licensing Advice Project – representing The South East Bayswater Residents Association) and Mr John Zamit (The South East Bayswater Residents Association).
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19A Craven Road, London, W2 3BP (“The Premises”) 18/00975/LIPN
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1. |
Sale by Retail of Alcohol – Off Sales
Monday to Saturday: 08:00 to 23:00 Sunday: 10:00 to 23:00
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Amendments to application advised at hearing:
None.
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Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):
The Sub-Committee considered an application by Mrs Praveena Velalakan for a new premises licence in respect of 19A Craven Road, London, W2 3BP.
The Licensing Officer provided an outline of the application to the Sub-Committee and confirmed that the Metropolitan Police and Environmental Health (EH) had withdrawn their representations following the agreement of conditions with the applicant.
Mr Hopkins, representing the Applicant, explained that the Premises was a tourist shop that sold tourist related goods. It was submitted that the Applicant was an experienced operator who had held a personal licence for some ten years at a shop situated opposite the Premises. She was also a local resident and was aware of the issues surrounding street drinking in the local area.
Mr Hopkins advised that following constructive discussions with the Police and EH agreement on appropriate conditions had been reached and subsequently they had withdrawn their representations. The Premises would operate to core hours, two members of staff would be present at the Premises at all times, CCTV would be installed and a condition not to sell super-strength beer, lagers, ciders or spirit mixtures of 5.5 ABV or above, except for premium beers, had been agreed. The representation from The South East Bayswater Residents Association (“SEBRA”) had requested that the private forecourt at the front of the Premises be conditioned to prevent customers drinking alcohol in this area. Mr Hopkins highlighted that there would be no tables and chairs on the forecourt and therefore adding a condition would not be appropriate or proportionate. This area was beyond the applicant’s control and reassurance was provided that no alcohol would be sold in open containers.
Following discussions with SEBRA Mr Hopkins advised that agreement had been reached that no miniature bottles of spirits of 20 cl or below would be sold at the Premises. The only matter in dispute related to the display area. SEBRA had requested that alcohol be restricted to a maximum of 15% of the Premises display area, whilst the applicant maintained that this be 20%.
Mr Brown from the Westminster Citizens Advice Bureau, representing SEBRAaddressed the Sub-Committee. He advised that concern still existed over several conditions. Firstly, the restriction on the sale of super strength beers and ciders was welcomed however; concern was expressed over the exception for premium beers. Concern also centred on the request for 20% of the shops display area to be used for the sale and exposure of alcohol. No reason as to why the Police and EH had agreed this condition had been submitted and it was requested that this be restricted to 15% as stated in the Council’s model condition. In terms of the private forecourt, concern was raised that in the shop window of the Premises there was a cafe sign. Customers could potentially purchase alcohol, leave the Premises and then consume it directly outside. The entrance/exit to the Premises did not lead directly on to the street and therefore it was not beyond the control of the licence holder to ensure no drinking of alcohol took place in this area. Adding a condition to prevent this would be sensible and appropriate. Finally, proposed condition 15 stated that notices would be displayed prominently at the entry/exit door and at the point of sale but there were no details of what these notices would state.
Mr Zamit, representing SEBRA, was pleased with the constructive dialogue that had taken place with the applicant. It was stated that the local area did experience high levels of street drinking and rough sleeping and this was why it was hoped all sales of alcohol would be restricted to a maximum of 5.5% ABV. Concern over the private forecourt remained and the Sub-Committee was advised that this should be conditioned to ensure no consumption of alcohol could take place in this area. It was hoped the display area for alcohol could also be restricted to 15%. Agreement on the other conditions had been reached however and the applicant was wished all the best with their future business.
Mr Hopkins reassured the Sub-Committee that a café sign was not in the shop window and this related to the Premises previous operation not its current operation as a tourist shop. Notices would be prominently displayed at the Premises and these would advise customers that:
It was still requested that the forecourt area not be conditioned, as there was concern that someone could purchase alcohol at a different premises, drink it in the forecourt and then the applicant would be in breach of the licence conditions. Instead, the applicant would be satisfied for a no tables and chairs condition on the forecourt area to be added to the licence. This along with with the condition ensuring staff would actively discourage drinking in the area provided reassurance that these restrictions would be sufficient to control the area and promote the licensing objectives. The Sub-Committee was also requested to retain the condition permitting 20% of the Premises display area to be for alcohol as the Police and EH had both found it acceptable.
In response to a question from the Council’s Legal Adviser Mr Hopkins explained that it was appropriate for 20% of the display area to be used for the sale and exposure of alcohol in order to ensure the financial viability of the business. The increase in this display area would increase turnover and provide greater operational flexibility.
In order to address the concerns raised over allowing the sale of premium beers of 6.5% ABV or above the applicant agreed to amend this condition. Therefore, it was now proposed that there would be no sales of any alcohol over 5.5% ABV at the Premises.
After careful consideration, the Sub-Committee agreed to grant the application. It was recognised that the Applicant was a very experienced licence holder who understood the nature of the area and the challenges it presented. The withdrawal of the representations submitted by the Police and EH following the agreement of conditions was noted. The Sub-Committee were also pleased to note that the Applicant had agreed to a condition prohibiting any sales of alcohol over 5.5% ABV. With regards to the forecourt the Sub-Committee was reassured that adding a condition onto the licence preventing any tables or chairs being located in the area, allied with the condition where staff would actively discourage the drinking of alcohol in this area, was deemed appropriate to provide reassurance that people would not loiter in the forecourt and consume alcohol. The Premises would operate within core hours and the style of operation would help ensure the Premises did not become a source of disturbance or crime or disorder. The Sub-Committee did not agree however with the proposal that 20% of the display area be used for the sale and exposure of alcohol. The Council’s model condition suggested 15% and this was considered appropriate due to the high levels of street drinking in the area. The Applicant had cited financial viability as the reason for this area to be 20% however, the Sub-Committee did not consider financial viability an appropriate or justifiable reason to potentially jeopardise the promotion of the licensing objectives to merit such a departure of its policy in this respect.
The Sub-Committee did have careful regard to the concerns expressed by SEBRA and the local resident but considered the conditions proposed to be appropriate and proportionate in the circumstances so as not to undermine the licensing objectives. After careful consideration the Sub-Committee was satisfied that, the Premises would promote the licensing objectives and therefore granted the application accordingly.
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2. |
Hours Premises Are Open to the Public
Monday to Saturday: 08:00 to 23:00 Sunday: 10:00 to 23:00
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Amendments to application advised at hearing:
None.
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Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):
The Sub-Committee granted the application (see reasons for decision in Section 1).
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Conditions attached to the Licence |
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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 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.
5 (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.
5 (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.
5 (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 subparagraph shall be taken to be the price actually given by that sub-paragraph rounded up to the nearest penny.
5 (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.
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Conditions Consistent with the Operating Schedule
6. If at any time the CCTV is not fully operational the licensing authority must be informed and a competent CCTV engineer called as soon as possible. Full details of any faults with the CCTV, inspections and repairs carried our shall be recorded in the appropriate part of the incident book.
7. All staff will be trained for their role on induction and at regular intervals of six months thereafter. Training will include identifying persons under 25, making a challenge, acceptable proof of age & checking it, making and recording a refusal, proxy sales, avoiding sales to intoxicated persons, avoiding conflict, responsible alcohol retailing and safeguarding children. Staff will also be trained in the operation of the CCTV system, checking it and downloading images for police or authorised officers. A written training record will be kept for each member of staff and be made available to police or authorised officers on request.
8. A minimum of 2 trained staff shall be on duty in the shop at all times the shop is open to the public.
9. All spirits shall be kept behind the counter and all other alcohol displays shall be in line of sight of the counter or covered by CCTV. Any alcohol not on display must be kept in a lockable store room.
10. A copy of the invoices for all alcohol or tobacco goods shall be kept on the premises for at least six months from the date of receipt.
11. Notices will be prominently displayed by the entry/ exit door and point of sale (as appropriate) advising customers that:
a) CCTV is in operation; b) Challenge 25 is in operation as the proof of age policy; c) Advising customers of the relevant provisions of the licensing act including re underage & proxy sales; d) That no unaccompanied children are permitted in the premises after 21.00; e) The permitted (licensed) hours & opening times of the premises; f) That no alcohol may be opened inside or consumed in the shop, g) To respect residents, leave quietly, not to loiter outside & to dispose of litter legally, h) Not to drink in the street.
12. A fire risk assessment & emergency plan will be prepared and regularly reviewed. Staff will receive appropriate fire safety training.
13. Management & staff will proactively discourage customers from loitering or drinking outside the premises politely that asking people do to leave the shop frontage & area.
14. The shop front will be kept tidy at all times and swept at close of business.
15. 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.
16. 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 is 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.
17. A Challenge 25 proof of age scheme shall be operated at the premises where the only acceptable forms of identification are recognised photographic identification cards, such as a driving licence, passport or proof of age card with the PASS Hologram.
18. 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. It must be completed within 24 hours of the incident and will record the following: (a) all crimes reported to the venue (b) all ejections of patrons (c) any complaints received concerning crime and disorder (d) any incidents of disorder (e) any faults in the CCTV system (f) any refusal of the sale of alcohol (g) any visit by a relevant authority or emergency service.
19. There shall be a personal licence holder on duty on the premises at all times when the premises are authorised to sell alcohol.
20. All sales of alcohol for consumption off the premises shall be in sealed containers only, and shall not be consumed on the premises.
21. No super-strength beer, lagers, ciders or spirit mixtures of 5.5% ABV (alcohol by volume) or above shall be sold at the premises.
22. No more than 15% of the sales area shall be used at any one time for the sale, exposure for sale, or display of alcohol.
23. There shall be no self-service of spirits on the premises, save for spirit mixtures less than 5.5% ABV.
24. Outside of the hours authorised for the sale of alcohol and whilst the premises are open to the public, the licence holder shall ensure that all alcohol within the premises (including alcohol behind the counter) is secured in a locked store room or behind locked grilles, locked screens or locked cabinet doors so as to prevent access to the alcohol by both customers and staff.
25. All tills shall automatically prompt staff to ask for age verification identification when presented with an alcohol sale.
26. Prominent signage indicating the permitted hours for the sale of alcohol shall be displayed so as to be visible before entering the premises, where alcohol is on public display, and at the point of sale.
27. 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.
28. All waste shall be properly presented and placed out for collection no earlier than 30 minutes before the scheduled collection times.
29. No collections of waste or recycling materials (including bottles) from the premises shall take place between 23.00 hours and 08.00 hours on the following day.
30. No waste or recyclable materials, including bottles, shall be moved, removed from or placed in outside areas between 23.00 hours and 08.00 hours on the following day.
31. No deliveries to the premises shall take place between 23.00 hours and 08.00 hours on the following day.
32. During the hours of operation of the premises, the licence holder shall ensure sufficient measures are in place to remove and prevent litter or waste arising or accumulating from customers in the area immediately outside the premises, and that this area shall be swept and or washed, and litter and sweepings collected and stored in accordance with the approved refuse storage arrangements by close of business.
33. No licensable activities shall take place at the premises until the premises have been assessed as satisfactory by the Environmental Health Consultation Team at which time this condition shall be removed from the Licence by the Licensing Authority.
34. No miniature bottles of spirits of 20 cl or below shall be sold from the premises.
35. There shall be no tables and chairs placed on the private forecourt at any time.
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Supporting documents:
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