Agenda item

Members:

Councillor C Carr (Chair)

Councillors B Kellett and P May

 

The Committee considered a report of the Corporate Director Adult and Health Services regarding an application to vary the Premises Licence in respect of McColls, 1-2 Shirley Terrace, Evenwood (for copy see file of Minutes).

 

A copy of the application and supporting documents had been circulated to Members. The Senior Licensing Officer advised that the application was for off sales only.

 

In response to a question from the Chairman, the Senior Licensing Officer confirmed that the Police had been consulted on the application as a Responsible Authority and had not made representation.

 

B Holland addressed the Sub-Committee on behalf of the applicant Martin McColl Ltd. He explained that the company was one of the largest convenience store operators in the UK, with over 950 licensed premises, the majority of which were licensed to sell alcohol between the hours of 06:00 and 23:00. The Group had grown and between 50 and 60 new stores were now opening every year. The premises at Evenwood had been acquired from the previous owner a few weeks earlier and therefore the problems referred to in the representations received from other persons were likely to relate to the former operator. 

 

McColls was a newsagent chain, hence the early opening hours. Arrangements had been made with suppliers for deliveries to be made after 7am and discussions had taken place with a Senior Environmental Health Officer in relation to noise.

 

The application was for the sale of alcohol from 06:00 and this was to allow customers such as shift workers, who shopped at different hours, to purchase alcohol with their newspapers. Apart from spirits which were located behind the counter, alcohol was displayed on open shelving within the store and it would be difficult to conceal or prevent selection if the premises were not licensed from the opening hour.

 

Mr Holland referred to the comments made by the Parish Council at page 99 in the report that the current licensing hours were incorrect, and stated that these had been quoted from the previous licence.

 

Mr Holland addressed the concerns made by objectors.  Traffic issues were not matters for the Licensing Sub-Committee, however notwithstanding this, McColls were experienced with dealing with concerns of this nature. Any problems associated with noise and youths congregating outside the premises would be taken seriously as they wished to maintain a good relationship with neighbours. Mr Holland noted the comments of Mr and Mrs Smith who were not in attendance, but was of the view that their concerns related to the previous management of the premises.

 

Addressing the licensing objectives ‘Prevention of Crime and Disorder’ and ‘Prevention of Public Nuisance’ Mr Holland referred Members to the proposed conditions in the operating schedule relating to the CCTV system, Challenge 25 and staff training. Environmental Health had not requested that additional conditions be placed on the Premises Licence. He also made the point that the Police had not made representation.

 

In conclusion Mr Holland stated that the applicant sought to have the seasonal restrictions in relation to Christmas Day and Good Friday removed.

 

In response to a question from Councillor Carr about the floor area designated for the sale of alcohol, Mr Holland explained the layout of the shop floor and agreed to supply a plan showing exact dimensions.

 

Councillor Carr noted that CCTV would not be accessed immediately on request and was informed that there may not be a member of staff on the premises at the time of request to download the images. However arrangements would be made for a person qualified to operate the CCTV system to attend as soon as practically possible. Following a request for clarification from Solicitor K Coulson-Patel, Mr Johnson the Area Manager confirmed that images could be viewed immediately on request and the system had the capacity to take screen shots. The Solicitor asked if the location of the CCTV cameras could be included in the plan of the shop layout to be provided by the applicant.

 

Following a further comment from Councillor Carr, Mr Holland confirmed that the applicant would ensure that an incident book was completed by all staff.

 

In response to a question from Councillor May, the Sub-Committee was informed that there was one other store 600m away.

 

Councillor Jewell asked about the CCTV system and the size of delivery vehicles, and was informed that there was one camera located to the front of the premises with between eight and twelve positioned inside. Mr Johnson explained that they did not have any control over the size of delivery vehicles.

 

Councillor Carr suggested that an additional CCTV camera be placed at the rear of the premises where deliveries were made which may allay the concerns of residents about the congregation of youths, and also the potential for underage sales by proxy.

 

Councillor Carr invited all parties to sum up. There were no further comments  and the Sub-Committee retired to deliberate the application in private at 10.45am.

 

After re-convening at 11.05am the Chairman delivered the Sub-Committee’s decision. In reaching their decision the Sub-Committee had taken into account the report of the Senior Licensing Officer, the verbal and written representations of the applicant’s representatives and the written representations of other persons. Members had also taken into account the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy and Section 182 Guidance issued by the Secretary of State.

 

Resolved:

 

That the application to vary the Premises Licence be granted as follows:-

 

 

Activity	Days & Hours requested
Sale of Alcohol (off sales)	Monday to Sunday 06:00 to 23:00 hours   Christmas Day 09:30  to 15:00 hours

 

 

The Sub-Committee considered the conditions suggested within the Operating Schedule of the application and believed it was necessary and proportionate to impose the following conditions upon the licence as detailed in the Applicants application for variation and those offered to the Sub-Committee as follows:

 

General - all four licensing objectives

 

a)        The premises will be managed in line with the four licensing objectives and government legislation.

 

b)         All spirits and high value alcohol will be located behind the serving counter and out of reach of customers.

 

The prevention of crime and disorder

 

c)    The CCTV system will be in operation at the premises and recorded images shall be retained for a period of 28 days.

 

d)    Cameras shall encompass the inside and outside of all entrances and exits to the premises and rear yards, fire exits and all areas where the sale/supply of alcohol occurs.

 

e)    The data controller will make available when requested to do so by the Police or an authorised officer of the Council (in line with the Data Protection Act 1998), downloads of the CCTV footage immediately and where not immediately within 48 hours of the request.

 

 

 

 

Protection of Children from Harm

 

f)     Staff will be trained before making sales of alcohol in their responsibilities under the Licensing Act 2003.  This includes the prevention of underage sales, the ‘Challenge 25’ policy, proxy sales, acceptable ID and intoxicated customers.  Training will be documented and made available to the Police and authorised officers of the Council upon reasonable request.  Refresher training will take place at least every six months.

 

g)    A register of refusals of alcohol, and of incidents occurring on the premises, will be maintained at the premises.  The register shall be examined on a regular basis by the duty manager/DPS.  The register will be made available for inspection by the Police and other authorised officers of the Council upon reasonable request within 48 hours.

 

h)   The premises will adopt a ‘Challenge 25’ policy.  This means that if a customer purchasing alcohol appears to be under the age of 25 they will be asked for proof of their age, to prove that they are 18 years or older.

 

i)     Posters will be on display advising customers of the ‘Challenge 25’ policy.

 

j)      The only forms of identification that will be accepted at the premises are passport, photo-card driving licences and cards bearing the ‘PASS’ hologram.

 

k)    A till prompt system will be in operation at the store and used for the refusal of all age restricted products.