Decision details

NOTICE OF DECISION

 

The Licensing Sub-Committee of West Berkshire Council met on 4 April 2019 and resolved to approve Application 19/00225/LQN in respect of an application for a premises licence for The Swan, High Street, Streatley, Berkshire, RG8 9HR subject to a number of conditions which are set out below.

 

In coming to their decision, the Sub-Committee had regard to the four licensing objectives, which are:

1       the prevention of crime and disorder;

2       public safety;

3       the prevention of public nuisance; and

4       the protection of children from harm.

 

They also considered the Home Office Revised Guidance issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003 and West Berkshire Council’s Licensing Policy.

 

Representations

 

The Sub-Committee considered the application and the written representation made by:

1       Objectors: Mr Gordon McBride, Mrs Anne McBride, Mr Ian McKenzie, Mr John Calvert, Ms Sally Bridgeman, Mr S M Gatto, Mr Brian Dickson, Mrs Jenny Dickson, J H Short, Mr Ben Warner, Mrs Louise Warner, Mrs J Storch, Mr Graham Underwood, Mrs Jacky Underwood, Mr John Palmer, Mrs Susan Palmer, Ms Rosemary Lee, C P Evans, M A Evans, E Worsley, Streatley Parish Council, Ms Marie Thomas, Mr Colin Coghlan, Mrs Anita Coghlan, Mr Paul Hardiman, Mrs Eileen Hardiman, Goring-on-Thames Parish Council, Mr Simon Carter, Mrs Susan Carter, Ms Jenny Hedge, Mr David West, Mrs Anthea West, Mr Ian Paddick, Mrs Diane Paddick, M J Christie, Mr P G T Read, Mrs Read, Mr Barry Newman, Mrs Valerie Newman, G E Sadler, P A Sadler, Mr Richard Hicks, Mrs Christine Cox, Ms Sue Crook, Mrs Wendy Riley, Mr Keith Riley, S Reynolds, Mr Geoff Crowther, Mrs Liz Crowther, Mrs Sandra Breen, Mrs Elizabeth Glover and Dr Allan Breen

The written representations made by Thames Valley Police and West Berkshire Council’s Environmental Health Officer had been withdrawn following agreement by the applicant to conditions.

 

The Sub-Committee then heard oral representations from:

1       Applicant/Applicant’s Solicitor: Mr Joe Mair and Mr Thomas O’Maoileoin

2       Objectors: Councillor Matthew Brown (Goring-on-Thames Parish Council), Mrs Anita Coghlan, Mr Colin Coghlan, Mr Brian Dickson (Thames Bank Association) and Mr Ben Warner

3       Ward Member: Councillor Alan Law

 

The Sub-Committee and parties present had the opportunity to ask questions in respect of the application, written submission, and oral representations.

 

 

Decision

 

Having taken those representations into account, the Licensing Sub-Committee RESOLVED that Application 19/00225/LQN be granted subject to the conditions as detailed and set out below together with the conditions as set out in the operating schedule as modified, as well as the relevant mandatory conditions of the Licensing Act 2003 or secondary legislation.

 

The Premises to be licensed in accordance with Plan no J420-CD-A2-08/B (submitted with this application) and the internal and external areas outlined in red. The Licenced Premises shall include the Terraces which are outlined in green on the attached plan. The Applicant shall provide an updated plan within 14 working days.

 

Box F: Recorded Music (Indoors)        

 

Monday to Saturday: 23:00 to 00:30

 

Box J: Supply of alcohol (on and off the premises)

 

Monday to Saturday: 09:00 to 00:30

Sunday: 09:00 to 23:00

 

All sales of alcohol between 9am and 11am will be ancillary to a table meal.

 

All sales of alcohol between 23:00 and 00:30 Monday to Saturday will be ancillary to a table meal or to those attending a private pre- booked function.

 

Residents and their bona fide guests 24 hours 7 days a week

 

Box I: Late night refreshment (indoors)

 

Monday to Saturday: 23:00 to 00:30

 

Residents and their bona fide guests 24 hours 7 days a week

 

Box L: Hours premises are open to the public

                                                                       

Monday to Saturday: 09:00 to 01:00

Sunday: 09:00 to 23:30

 

Residents and their bona fide guests 24 hours 7 days a week

 

A strict no entry policy shall be imposed on members of the public from 23:00 to 01:00 Monday to Saturday and from 23:00 to 23:30 on Sundays

 

Seasonal variations

 

     All licensable activities to be permitted from the end of permitted hours on New Year’s Eve until the start of permitted hours on New Year’s Day.     

 

Conditions:

 

1.     The premises licence holder shall ensure that a refusal log (either written or electronic) is in operation at the premises. All staff involved in the sale of alcohol shall be trained in how to use and maintain the log. The log shall contain a description of the person attempting to purchase alcohol, the time the said person attempted to purchase alcohol, the reason for refusing the person alcohol and the name of the staff member dealing with the refusal. The log shall be signed off weekly by the Designated Premises Supervisor or nominated representative and shall be made available for inspection to officers of West Berkshire District Council and Thames Valley Police.

 

2.     An incident log (either written or electronic) shall be used, maintained and kept at the premises. The log shall record any incident that undermines the promotion of the licensing objectives and any incident that involves police attendance at the premises. The log should contain a description of incident, time of the incident, action taken in relation to the incident and a description of any person involved in the incident The incident log shall be made available to authorised officers of Reading Borough Council and Thames Valley Police upon request.

 

3.     Staff employed to sell alcohol shall undergo training upon induction. This shall include, but not be limited to: the premises age verification policy, the law relating to underage sales,

dealing with refusal of sales, proxy purchasing,  recognising valid identity documents not in the English language,  identifying attempts by intoxicated persons to purchase alcohol,  identifying signs of intoxication, conflict management, how to identify and safeguard vulnerable persons who attend and leave the premises, identifying signs of drug usage and prevention and the four licensing objectives. Such training sessions are to be documented and refreshed every six months. All training sessions are to be documented in English. Records of training shall be kept for a minimum of one year and be made available to an authorised officer of Thames Valley Police and West Berkshire District Council upon request.

 

4.     The Premises Licence Holder and/or Designated Premises Supervisor shall ensure that all staff complete training in Child Sexual Exploitation that is of a standard agreed with Thames Valley Police and West Berkshire District Council training package within 28 days of employment and a signed record of their training shall be maintained. Refresher training in relation to CSE shall formally take place once every three months and signed records of this training and signed records of this training shall be maintained. These records shall be kept for a minimum of two years of the date of the training and shall be made available to any authorised officer of Thames Valley Police or an authorised officer of West Berkshire District Council.

 

5.     The Premises Licence holder shall ensure the premises’ digitally recorded CCTV system cameras shall continually record whilst the premises are open to the public and recordings shall be kept for a minimum of 31 days with time and date stamping. The entire licensable area shall be covered by the CCTV. There shall be at least one camera positioned at each entry and exit point to monitor any external areas to the premises.  Data recordings shall be made immediately available to an authorised officer of West Berkshire District Council or a Thames Valley Police officer, together with facilities for viewing upon request.  Recorded images shall be of such a quality as to be able to identify the recorded person.

 

6.     A sign advising customers that CCTV is in use shall be positioned in a prominent position. A fully trained person who can operate the system shall be available at all times when the premises is open to the public.

 

7.     The premises shall at all times operate a Challenge 25 policy to prevent any customers who attempt to purchase alcohol and who appear to the staff member to be under the age of 25 years from making such a purchase without having first provided identification.  Only a valid driver’s licence showing a photograph of the person, a valid passport, military ID or proof of age card showing the ‘Pass’ hologram (or any other nationally accredited scheme) are to be accepted as identification.

 

8.     Notices advertising the Challenge 25 policy shall be displayed in prominent positions on the premises.

 

9.     Clearly legible and suitable notices shall be displayed at all exits requesting customers to respect the needs of local residents and to leave the premises and area quietly. Staff shall be available to assist in the dispersal of customers from 22:00 each evening.

 

10.  The Premises Licence Holder shall ensure that no noise shall emanate from the premises, nor vibration be transmitted through the structure of the premises which gives rise to undue disturbance to local residents.

 

11.   All external doors & windows must be kept closed from 21.30, other than for access and egress, when events involving amplified music or speech are taking place so as not to cause disturbance to nearby residents and businesses

 

12.  All external doors shall be fitted with a self- closing mechanism other than external fire doors.

 

13.  There shall be no consumption of alcohol on the area referred to as The Island and marked as The Island on Plan No J420-CD-A2-08/B

 

14.  During operating hours the licensee or nominated representative shall be available to receive and respond to nuisance related complaints a contact number shall be readily available to residents upon request.

 

15.  An entry, closure and dispersal policy for controlling the opening and closing of the premises and the departure of customers from the premises at the conclusion of the licensed activities shall be put in place and shall be actively operated. The policy shall be in written format and made available upon request to an authorised officer of West Berkshire District Council and Thames Valley Police.

 

16.  All staff shall quit the premises in a quiet and orderly manner.

 

17.  Before any person is employed at the premises sufficient checks will be made of their bona fides to ensure they are legally entitled to employment in the UK. Such checks will include: Proof of identity (such as a copy of their passport), nationality, current immigration status and employment checks. Copies of any relevant documents produced by an employee will be retained on the premises and kept for a minimum period of one year. Employment records as they relate to the checking of a person’s right to work will be made available to an authorised officer of West Berkshire District Council or Thames Valley Police upon request.

 

18.      A minimum of 2 SIA licensed door supervisors shall be employed at the premises whenever the sale of alcohol takes place after 00:00 Monday to Sunday. These door supervisors shall be employed on a Monday to Sunday trading period from 2100hrs until the last customer/ resident has left the premises. These licensed door supervisors shall be employed solely for vetting, regulating, controlling and supervising patrons on or within the immediate vicinity of the premises and to ensure the maintenance of good order, public safety and security.

 

19.      A register of Door Staff shall be kept. The register will show the following details:

full SIA registration number, date and time that the Door Supervisor commenced duty countersigned by the Designated Premises Supervisor or Duty Manager, date and time that the Door Supervisor finished work, countersigned by the Designated Premises Supervisor or Duty Manager, any occurrence or incident of interest involving crime & disorder or public safety must be recorded giving names of the Door Supervisor involved.

 In addition a record of the number of patrons on site shall be made half hourly in the door register, training records,  ID Photo and scan of SIA badge and a record of the DPS/ management checking the validity of all SIA badges holders working at the premises (SIA Website checks)

 

20.      When door supervisors are employed at the premises they shall be easily identifiable and display their badges in high visibility arm bands.

 

21.      The Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) and Premises Licence Holder (PLH) shall ensure that a policy relating to the safe removal of persons from the premises and/or its immediate vicinity by staff and door supervisors shall be put in place and actively operated. The policy shall be in written format and made available upon request to an authorised officer of West Berkshire District Council and Thames Valley Police. This shall include but not be limited to: persons who have been identified by staff as being vulnerable or at risk, persons who are refused entry to the premises or refused service within the premises and persons who are ejected from the premises.

 

22.      The number of persons permitted within the premises shall not exceed:

Coppa Club Restaurant and Bar – 300

Events Space – 200

Hotel Bar – 75

 

23.      When persons in wheelchairs or other disabled persons are admitted to the premises the Licensee shall ensure that adequate measures are taken to enable such persons to evacuate the building in an emergency, in a manner safe and without undue delay and does not cause obstruction to other members of the public or employees using the premises.

 

24.      The Appendix entitled ‘Testing and Certification’ should be complied with in its entirety with checks and inspections being carried out by the appropriate person at the required times and such log entries as are specified being made. All logs, inspection certificates or documentation shall be available for inspection by any authorised officer of the Council, Fire Brigade or Police at their request.

 

25.      All escape doors are to be kept free of fastenings at all times the premises is being used for licensed events.

 

26.      All escape routes are to be kept free of obstruction at all times.

 

Reasons

 

The Sub- Committee noted that the Council as Licensing Authority must determine each application under the Licensing Act 2003 on its merits, and every decision must be both justified and proportionate based on the available evidence.

 

The Sub- Committee noted that the Council had not adopted a special policy in respect of the cumulative impact of licensed premises in this locality.

 

The Applicant had entered into post- application discussions with the police after the Application was submitted and prior to the Hearing. It was noted that the police had withdrawn their objections to the Application after conditions had been agreed. The police are a key source of information and advice on the impact of the licensable activities particularly on the crime and disorder objective.

 

It was noted that the Applicant had also offered additional conditions in the hope that these would address the concerns raised by the objectors.

 

The Sub- Committee considered that the additional conditions that had been proposed by the Applicant were proportionate, reasonable and proportionate to meet the requirements of the Licensing objectives. The Sub- Committee therefore determined that the licence should be granted subject to the conditions as detailed above.

 

 

CllrJames Cole                                                                                                                    (Chairman)

Cllr Jeff Beck

Cllr Paul Bryant

Date:10 April 2019