Our practice Lead, Matthew, sat on Hackney Council’s Licensing Committee as a Planning Expert for a number of years. He has therefore witnessed the difference between success and failure firsthand.

Obtaining a Premises Licence to sell alcohol can be the key to business success. Clearly if you run a pub, or any other type of on-sale establishment it is crucial, or if you are involved in off-sales it can transform your retail business and make it highly profitable.

The key part to any Premises Licence are the conditions imposed on it, either by yourself, or by the authorities.

It’s so easy to get it wrong. For instance, people often try to make the application on their own, and so accept all authority recommendations that are suggested, and then face huge problems trying to meet the conditions that are imposed.

Conditions are like rules. And whatever they are, you’ll have to abide by them 7 days a week, 52 weeks of the year when selling alcohol.

The Act says the punishment for breaking a condition of your Premises Licence is an unlimited fine, and/or 6 months in prison.

Is this a risk you really want to take?

Licensing Application

When an application is made, you not only apply to the Licensing Authority in your area, but also to nine (in some cases), other responsible authorities, including the Home Office. (All applicants now have to prove they have the legal right to work in the country to hold a valid licence).

All the authorities can ask for conditions to be added to your licence in order for it to be granted. The problem arises when you are unsure of the detail of the Licensing Act, and feel that you need to agree to all the conditions, simply because, for example, the Police have requested them.

It doesn’t have to be this way!

After all, you want a Premises Licence that will allow you some freedom in the way you trade, and most importantly, allow you to make money.

You certainly don’t want to end up with a legal document with 65 listed conditions, as I have seen, all because the applicant didn’t know what he was doing.