Agenda item - Schedule of Appeals Received

Report of the Head of Legal and Democratic Services (copy attached)

16.1    Councillor Simson thanked Officers for their efforts in arranging the recent Licensing Committee visit which had been very informative. She referred to the appeal which had been lodged successfully by the Marwood Café stating that when the Committee had visited the premises during their Committee tour the premises had been observed operating in line with the permission sought in their licensing application. The Panel who had made the original decision (of which she had been a Member) had grappled with a difficult decision in determining the application and had been concerned that if permission had been granted it would operate as a vertical drinking establishment. This had not proved to be the case and this represented a learning curve for the Members who had sat on that Panel. Councillor Marsh who had also sat on that Panel concurred in that view.

16.2    Councillor Simson stated that this illustrated the value of visiting premises and the Chair stated that Members were not precluded from visiting premises informally for this purpose if they chose to do so. Several Members demurred from that view, but the Chair reiterated that provided Members simply observed a premises they could not be seen as being biased or having pre-determined an application. Councillor Hawtree stated that he had had found it beneficial to visit a particular premises prior to consideration of an application.

16.3    The Head of Regulatory Services, Mr Nichols stated that in determining applications a key consideration for Members was to seek to ensure that they added/agreed conditions which were robust and enforceable. It should not be necessary for Members to visit individual premises as the information provided in Officer’s reports and from the submissions received at the licensing panel meetings should of be sufficient themselves to determine an application.

16.4    RESOLVED – That the Schedule of Appeals be noted and received.