Premises selling alcohol, providing regulated entertainment and/or providing late night refreshment need to be licensed under the Licensing Act 2003.

What is a premises licence for?
A premises licence authorises the premises in question to carry out licensable activities. Almost any business that does one or more of these activities (sell alcohol, provide entertainment or provide late night refreshment) needs a premises licence. A premises licence application may also be submitted for one-off large scale events, for example when an event is likely to attract more than 500 people which is outside the limits set for a temporary event notice.

Where the sale of alcohol is one of the activities you carry out at your premises, you will also need at least one personal licence holder. A personal licence holder must be named on the premises licence as the responsible person and is known as the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS).

What is regulated entertainment?
Regulated entertainment is entertainment provided in the presence of an audience, for the purpose of entertaining that audience. Entertainment activities include:

• performance of a play
• exhibition of a film
• an indoor sporting event
• boxing or wrestling
• performance of live music
• playing of recorded music
• performance of dance
• entertainment of a similar description (such as a karaoke).

It also includes the provision of entertainment facilities, that is facilities used for:

• playing music (for example a piano)
• dancing (for example a dance floor)
• entertainment of a similar description (karaoke machine).

How long is a premises licence valid?
A premises licence has effect until the licence is revoked, suspended or surrendered. This means it is not time-limited (unless the applicant specifically requests this for example for a music festival).

Who can apply for a premises licence?
Any of the following may apply for a premises licence:

• anyone who uses 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.

What is the application process?
Applications for premises in Aylesbury Vale should be made to AVDC.

Applications must be in a specific format and be accompanied by:

• any required fee
• an operating schedule
• a plan of the premises
• a form of consent from the 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 any other person or responsible body, eg AVDC, chief police officer or fire and rescue authority.

We must grant the application, which can be subject to conditions. 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 or the application can be rejected.

We will serve a notice of our decision on the applicant, any person who has made relevant representations (ie representations that were not deemed frivolous or vexatious) and the chief of police.

Applications can also be made to vary or transfer a licence. A hearing may have to be heard if representations are made or conditions relating to a transfer are not met.

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.

Please use the links on the right of this page to apply or renew information.

How long does it take to get a premises licence?
The time taken depends on each individual application, however the time period normally ranges from a minimum of 1 to 3 months, however this could be longer.

When an application is submitted, a 28 day statutory consultation period will follow. This allows time for responsible authorities and local residents/businesses (interested parties) to consider the application and make representation (ie in support of/ in objection to) the licence application in line with the four licensing objectives:

• the prevention of crime and disorder
• public safety
• the prevention of public nuisance
• the protection of children from harm.

The application must be advertised during the consultation period by way of a notice on the premises and a notice to be published in the local press.

If representations are made against an application which cannot be resolved through mediation, then the application will be heard by AVDC's licensing committee. The hearing must be carried out within 20 working days from the end of the consultation period.

The committee will consider the application before them and the representations and evidence it hears. The committee can decide to grant the licence as applied for, modify the conditions applied for, exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the licence, refuse to specify a Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) on the licence or reject the application.

Consumer complaints and other interested parties
The chief police officer for the police area where the premises are located can apply to AVDC 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 police officer can give a notice to AVDC 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.

An interested party or responsible body may make representations in relation to a licence application or request the licensing body to review a licence.

An interested party or responsible authority may apply to AVDC to review the premises licence. A hearing will be held by the council.

A chief police officer may make representations to AVDC 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.

An interested party or relevant authority 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.

How much does a premises licence cost?
An application fee is payable on submission and if the licence is granted an annual fee is charged. Fees are based on the rateable value of the premises to be licensed. See the downloadable form below for more details.

Please contact Licensing if you are unsure as to what type of licence you need to apply for.

Is there an appeal process?
Yes, an appeal process is available to the applicant and those who made representation to the application, if they are not satisfied with the decision of the licensing committee. Any appeal must be lodged at the local Magistrates' Court within 21 days of the date the applicant was informed of the committee's decision.

Date Updated: 04/11/11