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Application for new club premises certificate

A club premises certificate can be applied for by a qualifying club to permit the following licensable activities:

  • Supply of alcohol by or on behalf of a club to, or to the order of, a member of the club - for qualifying clubs there is technically no sale by retail of alcohol (with the exception of guests) this is because members own the alcohol stock. Therefore the money which is paid across the bar is a way to preserve equity between members, as one member may consume more alcohol than another member.
  • Regulated entertainment for club members and their guests - this may include plays, films, indoor sporting events, boxing or wrestling entertainment, live music, recorded music, performance of dancing, anything of a similar description to live music, recorded music or performance of dance, provision of entertainment facilities for making music, dancing or anything of a similar description to making music or dancing.

Eligibility

 A qualifying club has general conditions it must satisfy. These are:

  • a person may not be given memberships or as a candidate for membership to any membership privileges without an interval of at least two days from their membership application or nomination and their membership being granted
  • that club rules state that those becoming members without nomination or application cannot have membership privileges for at least two days between them becoming members and being admitted to the club
  • that the club is established and conducted in good faith
  • that the club has at least 25 members
  • that alcohol is only supplied to members on the premises on behalf or by the club

 Additional conditions in relation to the supply of alcohol must be complied with. These conditions are:

  •  that alcohol purchased for and supplied by the club is done by members of club who are over 18 years of age and are elected to do so by the members
  • that no person at the expense of the club receives any commission, percentage or other similar payment in regard to the purchase of alcohol by the club
  • that there are no arrangements for anyone to receive a financial benefit from supplying alcohol, apart from any benefit to the club or to any person indirectly from the supply giving a gain from running the club

 Regulation 

  The Licensing Act 2003 

Application requirements 

1.

Application form

2.

Plans of the premises

3.

Declaration as to qualifying club status

4.

 Copy of the rules of the club 

5.

 Application fee                 

6.

The Licensing Team will email the Responsible Authorities with a copy of your application 

7.

You must place a blue notice at the club from the day after the application is valid and ensure it remains in place for 28 days      

8.

You must place a public notice in a local newspaper within 10 working days from the day after the application is valid       

Things to think about when filling in your application form

  • What licensable activities your club aims to do both now and in the future
  • What impact could those activities have on the licensing objectives which are:
    • prevention of crime and disorder
    • prevention of public nuisance
    • public safety
    • protection of children

  • Supply of alcohol for consumption on the premises allows alcohol supplied to members and their guests to be consumed within the boundary of the area covered by the club premises certificate as identified on the plans. You need to think about outside areas as well if you want your members to be able to take drinks outside.

  • Supply of alcohol for consumption off the premises allows alcohol supplied to members and their guests to be taken off the premises and consumed elsewhere. The following mandatory conditions will apply.
    1. The supply of alcohol for consumption off the premises must be made at a time when the premises are open for the purposes of supplying alcohol, in accordance with the club premises certificate, to members of the club for consumption on the premises.
    2. Any alcohol supplied for consumption of the premises must be in a sealed container.
    3.Supply of alcohol for consumption off the premises must be made to a member of the club in person.

  • There are a number of exemptions including one for live and recorded music between 08:00 and 23:00 at licensed clubs that have on sales of alcohol.  This means that if your application includes on-sales of alcohol you do not need to include music on the application form unless you want music after 23:00. Incidental music is also exempt at any time. Regulated Entertainment Factsheet

  • If appropriate you may wish to discuss your intentions with the relevant responsible authorities for example the Police and Environmental Health Noise Team. This will save you time and effort and could avoid representations being made against your application.

New club premises certificate application forms

You can apply online through gov.uk. There is facility to pay online through gov.uk website.

Application forms if you want to apply by email, post or deliver by hand.

Address: Stroud District Council, Ebley Mill, Ebley Wharf, Stroud, GL5 4UB

Email: licensing@stroud.gov.uk

Telephone: 01453 754440

If you apply by email, post or deliver your application by hand you will need to contact the licensing team and make the payment over the telephone

Plans

Plans of the premises to be licensed must be included with the application.  The plans must be drawn to scale (1:100cm) and must show:

  • Boundary of area to be covered by the club premises certificate – this may include outside areas. It is helpful if you outline this boundary in red ink
  • Show the areas where different licensable activities will take place including consumption of alcohol if appropriate
  • All access and egress points including escape routes
  • Any fixed structures which may impact on the ability of individuals at the club premises to leave the building safely.
  • Location of fire safety equipment

Fees

The fee is dependant on the non domestic rateable value (NDRV) of the premises. This is not the same as the actual business rate which you pay, but it is a value determined by the Valuation Office.  The NDRV of any premises can be checked on the Valuation Office Agency’s website www.voa.gov.uk.  

Once a licence is granted you will have to pay an annual fee on the anniversary of the grant date.

Representation Period and Notices

When we receive your application we will acknowledge receipt and confirm whether it is valid. If your application is unclear or missing anything we will contact you.  The representation period will not start until the application is valid.

 A 28 day representation period will start the day after your application is valid. Once the representation period starts you must display a blue notice at the premises and take out a newspaper notice. See below for the template and more details.

Blue Notice - It is the applicants responsibility to advertise the  application by displaying a pale blue notice – size at least A4, with black printing or type equal to or greater than font size 16 placed in a prominent position at or on the premises concerned where it can be conveniently read from the exterior of the premises.  If the premises cover more than 50 metres square, further blue notices must be placed every 50 metres along the external perimeter of the premises abutting any highway.

This notice must be displayed for not less than 28 consecutive days following the day on which the application was valid. 

Newspaper Notice - The applicant must advertise the application in a local newspaper circulating in the vicinity of the premises, such as the Stroud News & Journal, Dursley Gazette or any other local newspaper.  The newspaper notice must be circulated on at least one occasion within 10 working days, starting on the day after the application was given to Stroud District Council Licensing Team.  The newspaper notice should contain the same information as  the blue notice.

The application will be invalid if the applicant has not displayed the blue notice and/or placed a notice in the newspaper in the timescales above.T

What happens next?

The responsible authorities or any other person such as local residents or Town or Parish Councils, can make representation about your application.  A representation must relate to one or more of the Licensing objectives.  Representations must be made during the 28 days representation period. 

The responsible authorities may contact you during the representation period to discuss any concerns they may have.

If there are no relevant representations from the responsible authorities or other persons your licence will be granted at the end of the representation period in the terms that you applied for.

However, if a relevant representation has been received, the Licensing Section will arrange a hearing before a panel of the Licensing and Regulation Committee.  The date for this will be within 20 working days from the end of the representation period. The applicant and all relevant parties that submitted representations will be invited to attend the hearing.  At the hearing all parties will have an opportunity to put forward their case and the hearing panel will then make a decision.  The decision may be:

  • Grant the club premises certificate in the terms applied for
  • Grant the club premises certificate with conditions. This could include reduced hours or removing a licensable activity
  • Refuse the application

 Appeals

Any person aggrieved by the decision of the hearing has a right to appeal to the Magistrates Courts within 21 days of being notified of the decision.

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