New Licence Applications

Opening a restaurant, bar, shop, takeaway or entertainment venue should be exciting. The licence application behind it rarely is. What matters is that the application accurately describes how you intend to trade, because the activities, hours and conditions you apply for will shape how the business operates for years afterwards.

A poorly drafted application causes delays, attracts avoidable objections, or leaves a venue trading under conditions that make no commercial sense. We prepare applications designed around the risks of your particular premises, and we look for the problems early, while they are still cheap to solve.

The first conversation is free and carries no obligation. Call us on 0207 222 2345 or send us an email.

When is a premises licence required?

You need a premises licence to carry on one or more licensable activities at a premises. The licensable activities are:

• the sale of alcohol by retail
• the supply of alcohol by or on behalf of a club to a club member
• the provision of late night refreshment
• the provision of regulated entertainment

Late night refreshment means supplying hot food or hot drink to the public between 11pm and 5am. Regulated entertainment can include plays, film exhibitions, indoor sporting events, boxing or wrestling, live or recorded music, and performances of dance.

Both definitions carry a long list of exemptions, and whether an exemption applies usually turns on the detail — the hours, the audience, the type of premises and how the activity is provided. It is worth establishing that before you apply, because applying for activities you do not need invites conditions you did not want.

A premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003 does not authorise gambling. Gambling premises are licensed separately under the Gambling Act 2005; see Gambling Act applications.

The four licensing objectives

Every application is judged against the four licensing objectives set out in the Licensing Act 2003:

1. the prevention of crime and disorder
2. public safety
3. the prevention of public nuisance
4. the protection of children from harm

Your operating schedule is where you explain how the premises will promote each of them. The measures in it should be relevant to your business and proportionate to its actual risks. Generic conditions lifted from a template are the most common cause of expensive, unworkable licences: a small neighbourhood restaurant does not need the dispersal policy of a 1,000-capacity nightclub, and it should not be committed to one for the life of the licence.

What we look at before drafting

An application is only as good as the assessment behind it. Before drafting anything we look at:

• your business model, and how you actually intend to trade
• the proposed licensable activities and trading hours
• the premises and the character of the surrounding area
• noise, safety, crime-prevention and dispersal considerations
• the local authority’s licensing policy statement
• any cumulative impact assessment or other special local policy
• the concerns responsible authorities or nearby residents are likely to raise

What the service includes

For a standard new premises licence application, our work normally covers:

• taking your instructions and assessing the licensing risks
• reviewing the licensing authority’s policy and any cumulative impact assessment
• drafting the application and the operating schedule
• checking the premises plan against the requirements
• preparing the designated premises supervisor consent, where alcohol is involved
• preparing and arranging the statutory notices and the newspaper advertisement
• submitting the application and serving it on the responsible authorities
• liaising with the authorities through the consultation period
• responding to any representations and negotiating proportionate conditions
• checking the licence when it is granted against what was applied for

Charged separately, and identified in your quotation before you commit: the licensing authority’s application fee, newspaper advertising charges, professionally drawn plans, site visits, specialist reports such as acoustic or security assessments, extended negotiation arising from complex objections, hearing preparation and representation, planning or building control work, and any court proceedings.

We will not incur optional third-party costs without your agreement.

How the application process works

1. Initial consultation and risk assessment

We discuss the premises, your business model, the activities you want and the hours you want them for. We read the local licensing policy and identify what is likely to make the application harder — nearby housing, late hours, an unusual operating model, or a cumulative impact assessment covering the area.

2. Strategy and information gathering

We agree the approach and collect what the application needs: applicant details, the premises plan, the proposed activities and hours and, for anything involving alcohol, the proposed designated premises supervisor and their personal licence.

3. Preparation and submission

We draft the application form, operating schedule and notices, and send them to you to approve. Once you are happy with them we submit to the licensing authority, serve the responsible authorities and arrange the newspaper advertisement.

4. Public consultation

A valid application is advertised and subject to a 28-day consultation period. During it, responsible authorities and other persons may make representations about the likely effect of the application on the licensing objectives. We monitor the application and keep you informed of anything raised.

5. Grant, negotiation or hearing

With no relevant representations, the application is granted as applied for, subject to the mandatory conditions. Where representations are made, we assess whether they can be resolved by clarification or by agreeing proportionate conditions. If they cannot, the application is decided at a licensing sub-committee hearing.

What does a premises licence application cost?

After the initial consultation we provide a written, itemised quotation. Our professional fee is normally fixed for the agreed scope of work, and the quotation sets out that fee, whether VAT applies, the licensing authority’s own application fee, the expected newspaper charge, any plan preparation costs, work that may become necessary, and the cost of hearing representation if it is needed.

The licensing authority’s fee is set by reference to the non-domestic rateable value of the premises, with additional multipliers for some larger alcohol-led venues. Newspaper charges vary by publication and area. Where a cost genuinely cannot be fixed in advance, we say so and explain how it will be calculated.

How long does a premises licence application take?

The statutory consultation period is 28 consecutive days, running once the application is valid. That is the fixed part. Around it you need to allow time for gathering information, drafting and approving the application, producing a compliant plan, the authority’s own validation, any negotiation, a hearing if one is needed, and the issue of the licence itself.

A straightforward application therefore takes appreciably longer than 28 days from first instruction to licence in hand. We will give you an estimate for your case, but we cannot control how quickly a licensing authority works. Do not commit to an opening date, a launch event or a staff start date that depends on the licence having been granted.

Premises we apply for

Restaurants and cafés, pubs, bars and nightclubs, hotels, convenience stores and off-licences, supermarkets, takeaways and late night food businesses, online alcohol retailers, theatres and cinemas, music and entertainment venues, event spaces, community venues, leisure and sports premises, breweries, warehouses and alcohol delivery operations, and festivals and outdoor events.

Applications involving very late hours, large capacities, outdoor areas, or premises inside a cumulative impact area usually need more preparation and sometimes pre-application discussion with the authorities.

What happens if someone objects?

A representation has to be relevant to at least one of the four licensing objectives. It can come from the police, environmental health, the licensing authority, trading standards, the fire and rescue authority, public health or another responsible authority, and equally from local residents, nearby businesses or any other person. Objections based purely on commercial competition are not normally relevant.

A representation does not mean the application will be refused. Many concerns are resolved by explaining what was actually proposed, or by agreeing carefully drafted conditions. We will always explain the operational effect of a proposed condition before asking whether you want to agree it — a condition offered to settle an objection is a condition you live with permanently.

Where representations cannot be resolved, the licensing authority arranges a licensing sub-committee hearing. This is a local authority committee, not a court, and you may be represented there by someone who is not legally qualified. We prepare cases and appear at these hearings; the work is quoted separately unless your original quotation says otherwise. There is more on how hearings run on our licensing reviews page.

After the licence is granted

The licence holder must check that the licence records the right activities, hours and conditions, display the licence summary where it can easily be seen, keep the rest of the licence available at the premises, comply with every condition, pay the annual fee, notify the licensing authority of relevant changes, and apply to vary the licence before doing anything it does not already authorise.

Breaching a condition is a criminal offence and a common route into a licence review. Go through the licence with your management team before you open, not afterwards.

Most premises licences have no expiry date. They continue until surrendered, lapsed, suspended or revoked, subject to the annual fee.

Who you are working with

Our consultants include licensing lawyers and barristers, former senior police officers, environmental health and acoustic specialists, and people who have run late-night venues themselves. On a new application that mix matters, because the objections you need to anticipate come from exactly those directions.

Important information about our status

Complete Licensing Limited is an independent licensing consultancy. We are not a law firm, and we are not authorised or regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority or any other approved legal services regulator.

We provide licensing consultancy, application management and representation at local authority licensing hearings. We do not undertake reserved legal activities and we do not represent clients in court. Our services do not carry the protections that come with instructing a regulated law firm: the Legal Ombudsman and the SRA Compensation Fund do not apply to our work, and complaints about our service are handled under our own complaints procedure.

If a matter becomes a court appeal, or otherwise requires reserved legal work, you will need an authorised solicitor or barrister. We can introduce you to suitable regulated firms, on separate terms, and you remain free to instruct anyone you choose.

Questions and answers