Premises Licence

To sell alcohol, provide late-night refreshments and regulated entertainment, you need a licence from the local authority if you are in England and Wales.

Eligibility Criteria

Any of the following may apply for a premises licence:

• anyone who uses or carries on a business in the premises to which the application relates
• a recognised club
• a charity
• a health service body
• a person who is registered under the Care Standards Act 2000 in relation to an independent hospital
• a chief police officer of a force in England and Wales
• anyone discharging a statutory or function under Her Majesty's prerogative
• a person from an educational institute
• any other permitted person

Applicants must not be under 18 years of age.

Regulation Summary

See links for a summary of the regulation relating to a premises licence

Application Evaluation Process

Applications must be sent to the licensing authority for the area where the premises are located.

Applications must be in a specific format and be accompanied by any required fee. An operating schedule, a plan of the premises and a form of consent from the Designated Premises Supervisor (for applications where the sale of alcohol will be a licensable activity).

An operating schedule will include details of:

• the licensable activities
• the times when the activities will take place
• any other times when the premises will be open to the public
• in the case of applicants who wish to have a limited licence, the period the licence is required for
• information in respect of the premises supervisor
• whether any alcohol that is to be sold is for consumption on or of the premises or both
• the steps proposed to be taken to promote the licensing objectives
• any other required information.

Applicants are required to advertise their application and to give notice of the application to Responsible Authorities, for example, the local authority, chief police officer or fire and rescue authority.

If no objections are received the licensing authority must grant the application, which will be subject to conditions consistent with the operating schedule.  A hearing must be held if any representations are made in respect of the application. 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, the Designated Premises Supervisor can be excluded or the application can be rejected.

The licensing authority will serve a notice of its decision on the applicant, any person who has made relevant representations (that is to say, representations that were not deemed frivolous or vexatious) and the Chief Officer of Police.

Applications can also be made to vary or transfer a licence. A hearing will have to be held if representations are made.

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.

Will Tacit Consent Apply?

Yes. This means that you will be able to act as though your application is granted if you have not heard from the local authority by the end of the target completion period. Tacit Consent will not apply to minor variations.

Apply Online

You can do this online from the links section.

Fees

No fee is payable for the provision of regulated entertainment ONLY

Where;

a) The licence or club premises certificate has effect in respect or premises that are or from part of an educational institution; and the provision of regulated entertainment on the premises is to be carried on by the educational institution for and on behalf of the purposes of the educational institution

or

b) the premises licence or club premises certificate will have effect in respect of premises that are or form part of a church hall, chapel hall or other similar building or village hall, parish hall or community hall or other similar building.

Fees are payable in all other cases as follows:

• Band A - no rateable value and up to £4,300 - Fee £100
• Band B - £4,300 to £33,000 - Fee £190
• Band C - £33,001 to £87,000 - Fee £315
• Band D - £87,001 to £125,000 - Fee £450
• Band E - £125,001 and above - Fee £635

If the premise is in Band D or E and is used exclusively or primarily for consumption of alcohol on the premise, the fees shall be as follows:

• Band D - Fee £900
• Band E - Fee £1,905

Information on the rateable value to which your application relates can be obtained from the Valuation Office

Failed Application Redress

Please contact Boston Borough Council in the first instance. If an application for a licence is refused the failed applicant can appeal. Appeals are made to a Magistrates' court within 21 days of notice of the decision.

Licence Holder Redress

Please contact Boston Borough Council in the first instance.

If an application is made by the Chief Officer of Police, as detailed below in the other redress section, 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 notice of the decision.

Consumer Complaint

An responsible authority or any other party may 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 notice of the decision.

Other Redress

The Chief Officer of Police 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 Officer of Police can give a notice to the licensing authority 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.

A responsible authority or any other party may make representations in relation to a licence application or request the licensing body to review a licence.

A responsible authority or any other party may apply to the licensing authority to review the premises licence. A hearing will be held by the licensing authority.

The Chief Officer of Police may make representations to the licensing authority 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.

A  responsible authority or any other party 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 notice of the decision.

Trade Associations

See links section

Enquiries

For any enquiries please telephone 01205 314235. A member of the licensing team will normally be available at the Municipal Buildings on weekdays 9am - noon and 2pm - 5pm (4.30pm on Fridays).

Privacy Notice

We are required by law to protect your privacy and inform you how your information may be used. The Licensing team collect your personal information to process and manage your  Licence Application.

Some of your information may be made available on a publicly available register and provided on our website as required by relevant legislation.

The information provided by you may also be used for legitimate reasons by other departments of Boston Borough Council and other lawful agencies.

These reasons may include but are not limited to: prevention of crime, detection of fraud and public safety

In some cases information relating to your applications may be requested under the Freedom of Information Act, this council will review these requests to consider if it is lawful to comply.

The Council takes your privacy seriously.  The Council is the Data Controller for the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulations 2018.

If you want to know more about the information we have about you, or the way we use your information please contact the Council.